Dear all, as you may or may not know I was an avid sportsbike rider some years ago.
It was so many years ago the bike I was riding was considered as amongst the best SBs of it’s time ( Moto Guzzi Le Mans Mk1 ) - don’'t laugh!
Many times the red mist descended I I nearly fecked it on a couple of lonley country B road corners.
Now I’m older and commitments mean that long runs on country roads are a thing of the past ( the days of waking up at four am - blasting down to Brighton by 5, Worthing by 5.30, Southampton …etc etc are cut short by having to mind the kiddywinks over a weekend ).
So now 99.9% of my riding is inside London - but I still get the red mist in a dangerous way…Filtering!
Last Saturday - Hammersmith one way - two scooters had the cheek to pass me by flitering on the inside…grrr red mist! I’ll show em! dive, twist, blast, dive round this bus …zoom, ****TTT Van slammed his brakes on in front! haul on front brake … screeech. skid …screech … stopped within an inch of his bumper… phew.
I can’t be bothered with London commuting anymore, I just ride up to a station thats is close on A roads and then take a quick train hop in, its alot less stressful than inner London, might be worth you taking a break if its getting to you so bad, you’ll onyl end up having an accident which is no fun…seriously I added up how much it cost and ther price was about the same adding up petrol etc and ALOT less stress!
Yeah man, riding through town is just not fun IMHO. Too many risks. Even bought an Oyster Card. OMG I’ve sold out. Better Moderate myself eh?
These days I stick to quiet mud splattered country roads where you can throw yourself and your new bike down the road without fear of getting run over.
Yeah, I’m in the middle of changing my london fiiltering (and associated “murder face”) for different stresses - tractors, muck from fields etc. Still, much more satisfying and far safer.
Still get twonks on bikes who proceed to “make progress” over junctions, on bends etc. Their life I suppose.
Dunno, I commute into central every day but stay south of the river all the way till waterloo bridge. Pretty quiet that side of the river and wheelies pulling away from trafficlights still bring a smile to my face. the occasional stoppie can also be quite fun… Never seem to get the ‘Red Mist’, maybe race another bike and almost die but not like a total “must overtake him” kinda thing
The ‘Red Mist’ is the reason why I am no longer commuting in to London. I had a few reckless momments at the end of last week that were triggered by an ashole transit van driver reving in to the back of my bike at lights. Loosing it at the controls of an R1 was scary once I realized how much risk I put myself in. Nice gentle rides to Brighton at the weekend is what I plan to do from now on.
Humility i remember handing that in with my licence application. And Dan your web site hasn’t been updated recently has it, love the monty python type balloon
It’s hard not to get wound up in a situation like this. But – I try to do it by the book and not let my anger show up in my riding. THIS IS SOMETHING YOU CAN LEARN! Try to practise it. You’ll feel proud of yourself when some ****er winds you up and you just let it go and keep pootling along.
In the beginning this is hard (and boy do I generally suck at keeping my cool), but you’ll see you’ll make progress as situation after frustrating situation arises and you stay cool 99.9% of the time. You MUST practise this. You can’t afford to lose it on a bike or you’ll put your life (and everybody elses) in danger. Trust me this is good advice, will keep you alive longer.
Recently I had an experience where somebody was winding me way the **** up and I almost lost it and considered to overtake him despite somewhat iffy visibility. Just when I decided not to I saw this nice 40-ton truck come from behind the bend. The air blast even shook me over in my lane and I know I would have become a nice hood ornament on that truck if I wouldn’t have reeled myself in.
Remember the old ninja saying: “He who wants to learn to defeat his enemy, must first learn how to defeat himself.”
I agree 100%. This is the method I employ as well. Easy does it, let the scooters have fun, they will get run over at some stage during the journey etc… I enjoy my commute, I occasionally “race” other bikes in terms of safe filtering, NOT speed (well okay, but that 600 was asking for it, I mean, revving it up next to a 1200??)
An ex police driver once said to me that he used to get really wound up in traffic then one day thought sod it - called the person who cut them up w-a-nker to themselves, felt sorry for the miserable little sod and got on with it…changed his life really.
for me I have been commuting for about 14/15 weeks solid. there have been red mist moments and calm moments, generally a battle.
Because it is a commute the route and car drivers’ tendancies become well known to an extent. Obv cant take it all for granted, but in the main, each day I commute to and from work, is pretty much the same, just a different car getting stuck or in the way, or tailing me, pulling out etc.
For me personally, the benefits dont outweigh the risks, but I continue because the risks are just that, risks. The train limited me regards times for leaving home/work, and I found that more stressful than commuting into Westminster by bike despite punctures, weather, cagers, wear and tear on bike.
Just need to save up and get a hack now. Im in for the long haul.
