Mark O

Offer still open for the transit of one bike and body to the ferry and back of course. M

My apologies were tendered well in advance and I had a note from my mum. Damnable tradespeople!!!........although a JWCC anorak might just be the very dab.

Gerard It's a brisk pace bunch ride over a set route. The group stays together until the climb out of Stewarton but regroups before heading back to Johnstone area. It is fast but not tt effort from the start. Rolling roads with a few ramps. Only way to find out for real is to ride it. M

Yip.

First chance to post since Saturday. Amazing day out. Thot it might have been a slog after a Friday evening function and early start but none of that, just an excellent 100+ ride at a reasonable pace given the small group with some good climbs chucked in (we don't talk about descents......ever). Got home full of beans, had beer and food, walked dog over the braes, headed out for dinner and red wine and didn't nod off at the table either. Perfect.........and then got to get a few miles in on Sunday!!!!!!! Bonus weekend.

Guilty as charged Andy. Nice to commute in dry sunny weather of late.

Tony, riding two abreast takes up no more room on the road than a small car. Billy's point regards the length of a bunch is also very valid. I'd guess most motorists would not aim to 'squeeze' past/overtake said small car at the same passing distance as they do cyclists, says he who got his butt slapped by a wing mirror of late. Squeezing past would threaten their shiny paint. There should be no trade off. The bottom (no pun intended) line is cyclists are not just cyclists. We, at a fundamental level, are human beings. We are someone's partner, parent, sibling, child. And we don't have a ton(s) of steel and plastic to protect us if someone gets it wrong. It is up to us to make drivers realise that, as was done this morning with Mr large SUV driver who almost took me out - very sheepish once I had pointed this out! We have a right to do what we do without being willifully or carelessly put in danger by others. There is, in my opinion, only one solution to road safety and that is enforcement of existing laws/HC and education via road user training and that means putting drivers in the cleats of cyclists. A lot of mistakes I witness on the roads are by people who just don't think but should know better, or don't know to think (the brain dead oblivious road user). I include the ear bud wearing, RLJ, gutter dwelling cyclists in that.

Iain, I was only pulling your (soon to be tired) leg. 100 miles with a good dose of verticle thrown in I'd be looking at 7 hours in the saddle (15ish mph ave). Factor in a ferry crossing and lunch - an 8 hour day. Home by 15.00 Home for 5 pm, post ride bowl of (insert sugar loaded cereal of choice) and now a coffee, 2 and a half hour power recovery sleep kip, shower, dressed, out the door at 6.30pm, restaurant for 7pm . All good .

A warm welcome Ryan. Good to meet you yesterday evening. LEJOG is fun, make sure you look up and enjoy the view while doing it. M

Saturday now good for me. Darryl send me a note of your postcode and house number, I'll drive over. One indulgence sought however, I have a black tie dinner on Friday and while I will be taking it easy on the wine, a forgiving first hour or so would be appreciated. On the point of a curtailed route, I think the bunch size should dictate that and not Iain's Saturday evening plans. Home for 5 pm, post ride bowl of (insert sugar loaded cereal of choice), half hour kip, shower, dressed, out the door at 6.30pm, restaurant for 7pm . All good M

Complete blast. Pretty fast to Stewarton with the aid of the tail wind. Interesting conditions on the return leg. One gust took 4 mph off the pace M'lud you are most welcome. I'd burnt a few matches into Dunlop and on the Stewarton lead out so had decided to take the climb at a steady pace. Robster hope your fine. Looked on your last legs. Nice to see PMcD join us. LA Paul, get some rest and speak to Billy Mac re the inconsistent performance. He'll have some advice I'm sure.

Yes

Sunny evening forecast. 18.30 depart this week. Who's in.

Eric good to hear you're ok after your spill. Turned out a fine day, the strong easternly wind apart which definitely picked up later in the day. Ended up doing a ton and a smidge, and clocking up 2335 metres of vertical. Legs creaking on the final ascent of the crow.

Bickering over detours and short cuts. What next? PEDS, hidden motors, sticks in spokes, bonus points for riding mass produced tat and handicaps for using Italian stylish quality components (see other thread). Poor Charlie now getting dragged into to mediate and restore order. Green jersey competition descending into eh.......... point scoring posting frenzy. Yis wur warned,so yis wur.

Rod, check. Fly, check. Cast, check. Bite? oh

Nowt wrong with shim. Italian quality is limited to wine, cheese, coffee and food in general. Football now and then. And perhaps fashion/style but I'm no expert. Their technological brilliance died with the empire around 300 AD or thereabouts. As for mass production cheap tat, I think you'll find Compag is not a cottage industry. Prejudicial slips showing Me thinks. PS it is Darryl's compag shifter that's gub. No mention of a gubbed shim shifter. Oops! Mere detail I'm sure. Lol.

As in 'aw reet, man?' Gordie venacular for 'How are you fairing my good fellow?' Takes the biscuit does that.

Darryl/Iain, Aim to be out Saturday morning for a Stewarton/Fenwick/Eaglesham both ways hilly route. Rough route in mind. 40 ish miles and never more than 20 from Paisley area. Steady pace to save legs for Sunday. Kind of an extended Sewing Bee without the hanging in bit in the tail. Say 09.00 at entrance to Routenglen Park suit you. First climb is up the hill from Speirsbridge onto the Stewarton Road. Road should still be fairly quiet at that hour. M

I read this last night and, in the light of Ginty's episode, I think that while the highway code could be more specific, the petition to set minimum passing distances is barking up the wrong tree. Billy is probably calling it right on this occasion. A change in the law/HC, as proposed, is unworkable as it is in practice unenforceable, therefore a bad law IMO, see mobile phone usage as a reference point. As Ginty's experience shows it is not always about what room you are given but how cyclists are regarded by motorists at all times. I think perhaps a petition seeking the inclusion of cycling for an hour in urban traffic as part of the driving test, any retest or test to drive a class of vehicle not covered by the standard licence would be more productive. If you can force motorists to experience what riding in traffic is actually like then there probably is a higher chance that motorists will have greater empathy for cyclists and a greater understanding of how vulnerable cyclists can be. Dead easy to implement - if you don't do the cycling experience bit of a driving test then you don't get the licence. The DVLA could employ BC coaches to do the training and on road instruction. Might even help the bonkers cyclists who get it so wrong on the roads too - spotted a bloke on a bike riding down a busy Paisley Road West which has really rubbish surface in sections, no helmet, headphones on, no hands on the bars, head down texting. Superb balance but a candidate to prove darwinism. No it wasn't Ginty before anyone asks.

Tough evening as usual. Can't believe the Robster let the Cooriers steal the Stewarton 30 after my lead out. Legs still nipping. Definitely felt off the pace at times last night. Hope I'm not incubating germs!!!!

Geez Ginty, that's awful mate. Could have been a lot worse getting skelped with one of those tractors, glad you're not too bashed up. Wishing you a speedy recovery. I thought the traffic in town of late had improved a fair bit. Even if you don't ride in Spain you should definitely fly out and enjoy the break. Look after yourself M

You needing a later start McB. Was a 6.15 depart last week and pretty cold heading home afterwards. Can knock the start time back a little if you need some grace to get in from work. Post up if necessary and we'll accommodate. 6.30 at the latest tho. M

It doesn't get dark until 20.30 now it's May. Unless of course you intend taking soooo loooong to get up the climbs, William I'll assume the bunch will descend into Strathblane and head for Lennoxtown and do the Crow from the south first. If so I'd aim to meet up somewhere between Wheelcraft and the Kyber. Don't worry if you miss me on the road I'll be in the area in any case. I said Milton of Campsie in previous post I actually meant Clachan of Campsie, a la Wheelcraft, just to avoid confusion.

I refuse to get out my pit at 06.30 on a Sunday morning to be in Johnstone for 08.15. Don't mind a 09.00 start from Miller Street. Might drive to Milton of Campsie and meet the bunch en route from Strathblane or fro the top of the Kyber - I assume you'll be doing the usual route -, do the Crow and Tak bit (repeated if necessary) then do my own thing - Aberfoyle (Duke's), Callander back thru Thornhill, Fintry and finish with the Crow from the North before coffeeand cake and the drive home, or a variation thereof. Room for 1 additional bike on the rack for anyone else wanting to do the Dukes etc.