Is it finally time to tax our Lycra clad cyclists ?

[Eamonnca1]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-41028321
A cyclist who knocked over and killed a 44 year-old woman in east London last year has been cleared of her manslaughter.

And how many car drivers killed pedestrians since then? Hundreds of pedestrians are killed by car drivers every year and there's not a word about it, but you always hear about the one cyclist in ten years who killed a pedestrian.

"In the 12 months between 2013 and 2014, the number of pedestrian fatalities on the road went up by 12%, from 398 to 446, whilst the number who were seriously injured rose by 1.3% to 5,063. Minor injuries impacted upon 19,923 people."

[Fat Angry Motorist]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-41028321
A cyclist who knocked over and killed a 44 year-old woman in east London last year has been cleared of her manslaughter.

This was an interesting case that has attracted a lot of media coverage i suppose cos it's rare for something this to happen.  Sounds to me like tthe verdict was probably right.  I do a bit of cycling now and again and this time I agree with the husband of the victim.  Though he was acquitted of manslaughter the cyclist was convicted under some law that dates from 1861 and was meant to cover the driving of horse and carts.  The law needs updated and I think cyclists should be brought under the modern laws that cover cars etc where that is relevant.

This guy came across as a bit of a dick and though that's not against the law, riding this type of track bike on the road is, and he was in the wrong even if he hadn't hit anyone, that's why theyre called track bikes.  The prosecution accepted taht the victim has stepped out into the road in front of the cyclist about 6m away and then stepped back into his path as they tried to avoid one another but argued that if the bike had front brakes he would have been able to stop and the court accepted this.  But it looked like he's going to get a spell at her maj's pleasure.

A rare enough case but to cyclists - track bikes belong on the track, they're built for speed, don't ride them on the road especially in a city.

[haranguerer]

He did come across as an awful p***k, but the charge seems to be a load of bollocks imo.

What does wanton and furious driving have to do with him having a front brake or not? That's what he was charged with, and its completely separate to your (and most other peoples) justification for the punishment. The braking distances claimed are questionable too, as is the fact as to whether its even the right course of action to brake at all. Populist decision to prosecute, ridiculous to try to initially go for manslaughter.

[Eamonnca1]

Reminds me of the case of a fella who was riding his bike under the speed limit but still got done under an archaic law for "pedaling furiously."

[yellowcard]

What is the rule on cycling on motorways? I regularly see cyclists on the hardshoulder of the M1 Belfast-Dublin. If it is not illegal then I think it should be. Come to think of it, tractors and other such slow moving machinery should also be banned from motorways as it is highly dangerous for vehicles travelling at such a slow speed on a fast moving road.

[Eamonnca1]

What is the rule on cycling on motorways? I regularly see cyclists on the hardshoulder of the M1 Belfast-Dublin. If it is not illegal then I think it should be. Come to think of it, tractors and other such slow moving machinery should also be banned from motorways as it is highly dangerous for vehicles travelling at such a slow speed on a fast moving road.

Allowed on dual carriageways, not allowed on motorways. I think the rule is you have to be capable of 50mph to be allowed on a motorway.

[punt kick]

Reminds me of the case of a fella who was riding his bike under the speed limit but still got done under an archaic law for "pedaling furiously."

Slap it up him.

[bennydorano]

https://amp.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2017/aug/29/is-the-uk-really-menaced-by-reckless-cyclists

[Puckoon]

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-41081756

Seems like Chris Hoy might need his mouth taxed...

Olympic legend Sir Chris Hoy says Lycra can look "awful" on anyone weighing more than 8st (49kg) and that amateur cyclists don't have to pull on a pair of tight-fitting shorts to look good. Is he right?

It is a question that many amateur cyclists will have asked at some point: does my belly/legs/bum* (*delete as appropriate) look big in this?

But according to Sir Chris - the six-time Olympic gold winning cyclist - not enough people think before pulling on a pair of Lycra leggings.

"Lycra isn't the most elegant material you can wear and professional cycling gear generally looks awful on pretty much anyone heavier than 8st," he wrote in GQ magazine.

He said the desire of so-called "mamils" - the dreaded middle-aged man in Lycra - to be seen in the latest high-performance Team Sky cycling kit all too often results in a tummy-turning experience for onlookers.




"Personally, I feel sorry for mamils," he wrote. "When they walk into a cafe dressed head-to-toe in Lycra, you always spot people sniggering at them."

So what do cyclists make of that?


Tom RochesterImage copyright Tom Rochester
Image caption
Tom, right, began cycling four years ago

Tom Rochester, 48, from Norfolk, weighed almost 28st when he took up cycling four years ago.

He did so wearing a 15-year-old pair of ill-fitting rugby shorts and an equally ill-fitting T-shirt.

Tom says his cobbled together cycling outfit did nothing for his self-confidence - or help his efforts on the bike.

He believes he would have packed his bike away for good within a few weeks if he had not found something more suitable to wear.

"When I did that first 25-mile ride with a couple of thousand other cyclists all in Lycra I was conscious that although I was trying to achieve something and better myself that I was probably the most ill-dressed person there."

"There is a sense of empowerment with it," he says about pulling on his fitted Lycra outfit.

"If you feel that you look good then you are halfway there."

'Dad's old jumper'

When Karen Wheeler first started cycling four years ago, the only clothes she could find to fit her were men's extra-large clothing from Tesco.

It made her feel like she was wearing one of her dad's "old jumpers".

"I felt like I looked like a fat bird who was trying to lose weight," she says.

The 50-year-old from Chichester weighs almost 20st and now cycles about three times a week.

She says wearing properly fitting Lycra clothing makes her feel "like a cyclist" and is disappointed by Sir Chris's comments.

"It is about looking good and it is about how it makes you feel on your bike," she adds. "I don't actually care what everybody else thinks about me because I feel I look good in it."


Sir Chris HoyImage copyright PA
Image caption
Sir Chris Hoy was regularly seen in Lycra during his track cycling career

Lynn Bye co-founded Fat Lad At The Back alongside her husband, Richard.

It sells cycling clothes for the "larger lads and lasses", with items fitting people up to a 60-inch waist or chest. She says her largest items would be regarded as a XXXXXXXXXXL size in most shops.

Expecting cyclists who are overweight to be happy to wear jogging bottoms and a T-shirt on a ride is self-defeating, she says. They will get hotter more quickly than in specialist wear and can feel alienated among other riders.

"It is difficult for somebody who comes from an elite cycling background to just say 'you can wear what you want'.

"It is like a supermodel saying you can wear what you want. But to a lot of people it makes a difference."

She added: "What we have found is a lot of people want to get into cycling, they've gone out to buy an XXXL top and tried it on in the changing room and it looks ridiculous," she says.

"We find that making people feel part of the cycling community makes them feel like they belong and makes them feel like they should be doing it."


Team Sky at the Spain's La VueltaImage copyright EPA
Image caption
So-called mamils often look like Team Sky wannabes, Sir Chris said

However, Pete Reynolds, a blogger who writes about cycling styles, says Sir Chris's comments have a point.

Pete, who is originally from Liverpool but currently lives in Berlin, says the British attitude to cycling - and particularly about what to wear while on two wheels - is very different to the attitudes of our Continental cousins.

"If you go to other places in Europe - in Amsterdam, or Copenhagen, or here in Berlin - people are riding around in everyday clothing," he says.

"I think people in the UK see cycling as a sport rather than a means of transport," he says, adding: "I think it creates an image of cycling that is undesirable and unattainable."

He also says the sight of a cyclist in full kit may also dehumanise them.

"When people are setting out in their full gear they don't look human. In Europe it is just a person on a bike rather than 'a cyclist'."

He says there has been a mini-revolution in what is available for cyclists to wear on rides, with specialist jeans and shirts available in lighter, more suitable materials.

"In the UK, we are associating cycling with riding the Tour de France," he adds, "and it is making it seem much harder than it should be to a lot of people."

[Eamonnca1]

D*ckhead. Would he prefer riders to wear soccer shorts with a plumber's cleavage sticking out the back?

[Eamonnca1]

https://amp.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2017/aug/29/is-the-uk-really-menaced-by-reckless-cyclists

No. It's menaced by reckless drivers.

Next question.

[Hardy]

D*ckhead. Would he prefer riders to wear soccer shorts with a plumber's cleavage sticking out the back?

Yes - those are the two options.

[Eamonnca1]

If you want to look ridiculous on a bike then go right ahead and wear your soccer shorts. I'll stick to the gear that was actually designed for cycling.

[thebigfella]

If you want to look ridiculous on a bike then go right ahead and wear your soccer shorts. I'll stick to the gear that was actually designed for cycling.

Designed for 8 stone cyclists though and not fat fcuks

[haveaharp]

Aye that's why it's stretchy