AG: Skills
 

On 07/02/2015 11:25 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:

You learn skills so that you can ride; you don't ride to show off your
skills. Don't use a hard-won skill just because you spent a lot of
time learning it.

Negotiating your way into the left-turn lane and going with the flow
of traffic is the quickest, easiest, and safest way to make a left
turn most of the time, but in any vehicle there are times when it's
better to make three right turns instead. On many occasions, I've
turned right into a deserted side street, made a U turn, and crossed
with the light. Or I'll turn into a not-so-deserted side street and
turn around in a parking lot or driveway. And it isn't unknown to
ride straight through, get off the bike, walk back to the
intersection, and push the pedestrian-crossing button.

Selecting the best technique for the situation at hand is, perhaps,
the hardest-won skill of all.


+1

AG: Frostburn
 

Stick-type sunscreen is a convenient way to put a layer of grease on
exposed skin in cold weather, and it can be carried in your pocket for
touch-ups.

--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

Frostburn
 

Joy Beeson wrote in
:

Stick-type sunscreen is a convenient way to put a layer of grease on
exposed skin in cold weather, and it can be carried in your pocket for
touch-ups.

What is "frostburn"? Do you mean windburn or frostbite? The former is a form
of sunburn, in which case sunscreen is indicated; the latter is a cold
weather injury, and sunscreen will not help.
--
Andrew Chaplin
SIT MIHI GLADIUS SICUT SANCTO MARTINO
(If you're going to e-mail me, you'll have to get "yourfinger." out.)

AG: Pedestrians are stationary, bicycles are pedestrians
 

For better or for worse, motorists see bike riders as people, not as
vehicles.

When a driver who doesn't ride sees you, he sees a pedestrian on
wheels.

Once upon a time, I was at a racquet club and needed to go to the
print shop, transact some business, and return to the racquet club. I
emerged from the driveway, turned onto New Karner, overtook a
pedestrian who was also headed toward US 20, rode a mile on 20, took
care of my errand, and rode back again.

The pedestrian was only a few yards from where I had overtaken him.

It isn't all that unreasonable for drivers to regard pedestrians as
stationary objects. It's often a lethal mistake, but one that is
quite understandable, and very common.

In the eyes of a motorist, you are a pedestrian. Expect him to aim
for the spot where you will be when he gets there, confident that you
will remain where you were when he last glanced in your direction.


--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

AG: Sleeping in a cold room
 

I don't *ever* expect to need this tip again.

When sleeping in an unheated room without the bed-heaters our
ancestors deployed, a pair of thick wool socks helps out of all
proportion to the area of skin covered. It can make the difference
between being comfortable and being curled up in a tight ball trying
in vain to avoid touching the sheets.

--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

AG: Country Roads
 

On a lonely country road, ride far enough to the left -- this being a
multinational forum, make that "close enough to the center" -- that
you can make a dramatic and visible move toward the edge of the road.

When you hear a car coming, watch it in your mirror until you are
quite sure the driver can see you turn your head as if looking back
before you move toward the edge of the road.

--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

AG: Country Roads
 

On Sat, 07 Mar 2015 23:31:57 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote:


On a lonely country road, ride far enough to the left -- this being a
multinational forum, make that "close enough to the center" -- that
you can make a dramatic and visible move toward the edge of the road.

When you hear a car coming, watch it in your mirror until you are
quite sure the driver can see you turn your head as if looking back
before you move toward the edge of the road.


I think that your system works on more than country roads. I use much
similar actions in city riding, make sure the other bloke knows what
you intend, obviously look at people, etc. It seems to work :-)
--
Cheers,

John B.

AG: The Tim Conway Warmup
 

A few weeks ago, I dined out, enjoyed my meal so much that I forgot to
fidget, and found my legs extremely stiff when I stood up. I said
"I'm not sure I can walk" and did my impression of Tim Conway's
impression of a little old man. To do this, you stand up straight,
slide one foot forward an inch, slide the other foot forward an inch,
and repeat very, very fast. It's funnier than a tank running over a
Cadillac.

After a foot or so of travel, I stopped to giggle -- and discovered
that all the cramps were gone. Ever since, I've been doing the Tim
Conway shuffle whenever I thought my muscles needed shaking up -- and,
I've found, doing it the full length of a vinyl runner that one is
trying to flatten can actually get one a little out of breath.

Non-skid slipper socks mess it all up.

A slow-motion version works on ice, if one has one's cane firmly
planted.


--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

AG: Quick Mechanical Check
 

Before each ride, lift your bike slightly and drop it. You will
quickly learn what sound it makes when nothing is loose.

If you have a bunch of heavy stuff in your panniers, bounce each tire
separately.


--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

AG: Country Roads
 

Why do you feel you are responsible for the car behind? If they want to
overtake they can change lane, if its not safe for them to do that do
you really want to encourage them to squeeze by?

On 08/03/2015 03:31, Joy Beeson wrote:

On a lonely country road, ride far enough to the left -- this being a
multinational forum, make that "close enough to the center" -- that
you can make a dramatic and visible move toward the edge of the road.

When you hear a car coming, watch it in your mirror until you are
quite sure the driver can see you turn your head as if looking back
before you move toward the edge of the road.