Road riding?

Riding Advice
1

Hi,

Being a newbie Cokerhead, I thought I’d run a quick poll to see who rides
on the road (pavement) and who rides on the pavement (sidewalk).

We had this discussion some time ago and the consensus back then (if I
recall correctly) was that most people kept out of the road. Has this
changed with the appearance of the Coker? It’s so much faster than your
average unicycle and it’s less manoeuvrable for avoiding pedestrians.
Alas, it’s just as likely to distract drivers and it’d still be a real
shame if you dismounted under somebody’s wheels…

At the moment I’m staying well away from main roads but I ride on smaller,
quieter roads. I’ve noticed that most(*) drivers give you a really wide
berth when overtaking. Thoughts?

(*) all except taxi drivers, it seems.

Regards, Mark.

–

Fujitsu Telecom Europe Ltd,| o Solihull Parkway, | In the land of the
pedestrian, /|\ Birmingham Business Park, | the one-wheeled man is king.
<< Birmingham, ENGLAND. | O

2

Given a choice, I usually choose the road if the traffic allows. Most
people give me more room than if I were on a bike(except the ones that
honk & swerve & yell trying to get me to fall for their own
entertainment). -Mark

> Hi,
>
> Being a newbie Cokerhead, I thought I’d run a quick poll to see who
> rides on the road (pavement) and who rides on the pavement (sidewalk).
>
> We had this discussion some time ago and the consensus back then (if I
> recall correctly) was that most people kept out of the road. Has this
> changed with the appearance of the Coker? It’s so much faster than your
> average unicycle and it’s less manoeuvrable for avoiding pedestrians.
> Alas, it’s just as likely to distract drivers and it’d still be a real
> shame if you dismounted under somebody’s wheels…
>
> At the moment I’m staying well away from main roads but I ride on
> smaller, quieter roads. I’ve noticed that most(*) drivers give you a
> really wide berth when overtaking. Thoughts?
>
> (*) all except taxi drivers, it seems.
>
> Regards, Mark.
>
> –

> Fujitsu Telecom Europe Ltd,| o Solihull Parkway, | In the land of the
> pedestrian, /|\ Birmingham Business Park, | the one-wheeled man is king.
> << Birmingham, ENGLAND. | O

3

M.Wiggins@ftel.co.uk writes:
>Hi,
>
>Being a newbie Cokerhead, I thought I’d run a quick poll to see who rides
>on the road (pavement) and who rides on the pavement (sidewalk).
>
>We had this discussion some time ago and the consensus back then (if I
>recall correctly) was that most people kept out of the road. Has this
>changed with the appearance of the Coker? It’s so much faster than your
>average unicycle and it’s less manoeuvrable for avoiding pedestrians.
>Alas, it’s just as likely to distract drivers and it’d still be a real
>shame if you dismounted under somebody’s wheels…
>
>At the moment I’m staying well away from main roads but I ride on
>smaller, quieter roads. I’ve noticed that most(*) drivers give you a
>really wide berth when overtaking. Thoughts?
>
>(*) all except taxi drivers, it seems.
>
>Regards, Mark.
I ride down a long bike path, recently perfected, that goes down the west
side of Manhattan to the Brooklyn Bridge area, at which point I have a
scary 3-4 minute ride to the bridge, hoping all the while not to have a
parked car open its door into me (happened once) or a pedestrian run out
in front of me, etc. I avoid the street but do have to ride in it on
occasion. It’s even scarier now that I have 5" cranks instead of the 6"
cranks that the Coker came with.

4

Mark Wiggins wrote:
> At the moment I’m staying well away from main roads but I ride on
> smaller, quieter roads. I’ve noticed that most(*) drivers give you a
> really wide berth when overtaking. Thoughts?

I’d love to say that I stay on the road, not least because that’s what UK
law requires. But since the first mile of my commute is along a very busy
A-road with very few peds on the pavement, I ride on the pavement until I
reach the cyclepath (actually I think that pavement may be legally
designated as shared use footpath/cyclepath, but I wouldn’t dream of
riding a bike on it - I stick to the road then).

When I reach the village where I work and leave the cyclepath, I
use the road.

–
Danny Colyer (remove your.mind to reply)
http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/danny/danny.html “The secret of life is
honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made” -
Groucho Marx

5

Note to citizens of the USA - this post is written in English. :slight_smile:

> I’d love to say that I stay on the road, not least because that’s what
> UK law requires.

Are you sure?

I’ve always stuck to pavements because I’m roughly Level 2 and I don’t
fancy my chances in traffic.

I believed this to be OK because the rec.sports.unicycling FAQ says :-

" United Kingdom

‘“Cycle” means a bicycle, tricycle, or cycle having four or more wheels,
not being in any case a motor vehicle.’

So cycle laws don’t cover a unicycle. There is nothing about unicycles
anywhere in the road traffic legislation.

"

Ok - so I just realised that you wrote that !

What exactly does UK (or English) Law say about unicycles, oh
informed one?

Am I a felon?

:slight_smile:

Andrew Feldhaus

6

On 24/5/01 8:47 pm, Andrew Feldhaus posted:

> Note to citizens of the USA - this post is written in English. :slight_smile:
>
>> I’d love to say that I stay on the road, not least because that’s what
>> UK law requires.
>
> Are you sure?
>
Surprisingly enough, he’s right.
>

> '“Cycle” means a bicycle, tricycle, or cycle having four or more wheels,
> not being in any case a motor vehicle.’

>
BUT this was changed under the “pedal cycle construction and use” act in
around 1993/1994. It now reads '“Cycle” means a Unicycle, bicycle,
tricycle etc…", thus bringing unicycles into the law, subject to same
road laws as Bikes.

You need light/reflectors after dark, but don’t need brakes as its a
fixed wheel.

In theory, then, this does mean that you shouldn’t ride on the pavement in
the UK. But, hey…

–
Trevor Coultart (Anecdotal and/or amusing quotation currently unavailable)

7

Trevor Coultart backed me up with:
> BUT this was changed under the “pedal cycle construction and use” act in
> around 1993/1994. It now reads '“Cycle” means a Unicycle, bicycle,
tricycle
> etc…", thus bringing unicycles into the law, subject to same road laws
as
> Bikes.

Specifically, Traffic Sign Regulations 1994 Statutory Instrument 1519,
appendix 7 (Roger gave me the reference a while back and I checked it in
the library).

> In theory, then, this does mean that you shouldn’t ride on the pavement
> in the UK. But, hey…

I remember riding home from the pub one night about 7 years ago (on the
pavement) and noticing a police car following me at a crawl. When I looked
round, the driver said “don’t worry, just admiring.”

I remember riding home from the pub another night, about 5 years ago, when
I rode right past a WPC on the pavement. She said “I bet you couldn’t do
that after a few pints.”. I chose not to put her straight.

Stuart Allbrighton wrote to Hampshire Police Force to clarify their
position. The letter he received from the Chief Constable was posted here
on 4 December 2000, but I’ll repost it now:

Dear Sir,

Thank you for you enquiry regarding the use of Uni-Cycles. The first point
that must be clarified is that by definition this type of vehicle comes
into the definition of a Pedal Cycle under Reg 3(b) Pedal Cycle
Construction and Use Regulations 1993.

Under the Highways Act 1835 Section 72 it is an offence to ride a
pedal cycle on a Foot Path, (the definition of foot path includes
pavement). This means that the vehicle should be used on the road and
not on the pavement.

With regard to brakes this type of vehicle with direct drive would not
require additional brakes.

With regard to the fitting of lights, this is dealt with under Reg 4
(3) Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations 1989 which states, (Nothing in these
regulations shall require any lamp or reflector to be fitted between
sunrise and sunset to = Pedal Cycle). However if such a vehicle is
used between sunset and sunrise then it must be fitted with one front
position lamp one rear position lamp and one retro reflector.

This information should help clarify the position regarding the use of
this type of vehicle on a road.

Yours sincerely

C J Bartlett PC 107. Traffic Management Officer.

Website - www.hampshire.police.uk

–
Danny Colyer (remove your.mind to reply)
http://www.speedy5.freeserve.co.uk/danny/danny.html “The secret of life is
honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made” -
Groucho Marx

8

> > '“Cycle” means a bicycle, tricycle, or cycle having four or more
> > wheels,
not
> > being in any case a motor vehicle.’

> >
> BUT this was changed under the “pedal cycle construction and use” act in
> around 1993/1994. It now reads '“Cycle” means a Unicycle, bicycle,
tricycle
> etc…", thus bringing unicycles into the law, subject to same road laws
as
> Bikes.

Drat.

Andrew

9

In the rural area where i live, there is no pavement (sidewalk), and the
road (pavement) is extremely rough and narrow. Happily, this doesn’t stop
me from enjoying the coker! Have to dodge the cars sometimes, and a few do
swerve and try to impress their girls by making me do an “unintentional
dismount”, but most are courteous and curious…just smile and wave and
keep cokering!

Chuck

“Mark Wiggins” <M.Wiggins@ftel.co.uk> wrote in message
news:3B0D20F7.449E2F4A@ftel.co.uk…
> Hi,
>
> Being a newbie Cokerhead, I thought I’d run a quick poll to see who
> rides on the road (pavement) and who rides on the pavement (sidewalk).
>
> We had this discussion some time ago and the consensus back then (if I
> recall correctly) was that most people kept out of the road. Has this
> changed with the appearance of the Coker? It’s so much faster than your
> average unicycle and it’s less manoeuvrable for avoiding pedestrians.
> Alas, it’s just as likely to distract drivers and it’d still be a real
> shame if you dismounted under somebody’s wheels…
>
> At the moment I’m staying well away from main roads but I ride on
> smaller, quieter roads. I’ve noticed that most(*) drivers give you a
> really wide berth when overtaking. Thoughts?
>
> (*) all except taxi drivers, it seems.
>
> Regards, Mark.
>
> –

> Fujitsu Telecom Europe Ltd,| o Solihull Parkway, | In the land of the
> pedestrian, /|\ Birmingham Business Park, | the one-wheeled man is king.
> << Birmingham, ENGLAND. | O

10

Coker on the road every time, except for on red routes (no stopping roads)
which you share the cycle lane with buses and I feel kind of bad slowing
down public transport and they’re damn scary. I sometimes jump off at red
lights and cross over at the crossing if I don’t feel up to idling. Oh and
if I’m not sure where I’m going I’ll often go onto the pavement.

I think in centralish London you don’t have much choice, the cycle lane
stuff is pretty non-existent except for on very main roads and even when
it does exist it always has those stupid annoying “cyclists dismount”
signs every time you get to a junction. I’m not going to obey those until
they put signs at major junctions saying “motorists get out and push”. The
pavements are too crowded really.

I’ve found my coker person avoidance skills improved quite a lot from
doing some not too drastic downhill muni stuff with the Coker.

On the road I found that if you make yourself very visible then you’re
usually fine.

As far as the law goes, I’ve ridden past the police both on the pavement
and on the road and never had any problems with them, I don’t think most
police are too bothered.

Joe

> Being a newbie Cokerhead, I thought I’d run a quick poll to see who
> rides on the road (pavement) and who rides on the pavement (sidewalk).
>
> We had this discussion some time ago and the consensus back then (if I
> recall correctly) was that most people kept out of the road. Has this
> changed with the appearance of the Coker? It’s so much faster than your
> average unicycle and it’s less manoeuvrable for avoiding pedestrians.
> Alas, it’s just as likely to distract drivers and it’d still be a real
> shame if you dismounted under somebody’s wheels…
>
> At the moment I’m staying well away from main roads but I ride on
> smaller, quieter roads. I’ve noticed that most(*) drivers give you a
> really wide berth when overtaking. Thoughts?
>
> (*) all except taxi drivers, it seems.

11

joe_marshall@bigfoot.com writes:
>Coker on the road every time, except for on red routes (no stopping
>roads) which you share the cycle lane with buses and I feel kind of bad
>slowing down public transport and they’re damn scary. I sometimes jump
>off at red lights and cross over at the crossing if I don’t feel up to
>idling. Oh and if I’m not sure where I’m going I’ll often go onto the
>pavement.
I recommend NOT idling on a Coker (unless it’s unavoidable) because of
the wear it causes the tire as well as the strain it puts on your knees.
I have ridden just over 600 miles on my Coker and am about to rotate the
tire for the first time later today. I shold mention that idling was
MUCH easier when I had 6" (150mm) cranks instead of the 5" cranks on
now. What I always strive to do is to find a signpost to hold onto until
the light changes.
>
>I think in centralish London you don’t have much choice, the cycle lane
>stuff is pretty non-existent except for on very main roads and even when
>it does exist it always has those stupid annoying “cyclists dismount”
>signs every time you get to a junction. I’m not going to obey those until
>they put signs at major junctions saying “motorists get out and push”.
>The pavements are too crowded really.
There are parts of Manhattan I couldn’t hope to ride in because of the
danger of having to dismount suddenly. I actually landed (softly) on a
pedestrian just this week who changed her mind and walked right in front
of me as I was riding (at walking pace) a few feet behind her. Profuse
apologies.
>
>
>On the road I found that if you make yourself very visible then you’re
>usually fine.
I often wear a bright red t-shirt with the words on the back that look
like those of our firetrucks: KEEP 200 FEET BACK. The bright red makes me
more visible from the front, and the words give the right idea to
bicyclists who would want to pass.

David Stone

12

> I often wear a bright red t-shirt with the words on the back that look
> like those of our firetrucks: KEEP 200 FEET BACK. The bright red makes
> me more visible from the front, and the words give the right idea to
> bicyclists who would want to pass.

Great shirt! Sounds perfect for city riding.

I’m still amazed at your use of short cranks for riding at such close
quarters with the pedestrians and vehicles of Manhattan. I’ve ridden in
the environment and I know it sometimes requires instant reaction, as you
mentioned. I much prefer longer cranks on my big wheel, so I can at least
turn suddenly if something pops in front of me.

When I had the opportunity, I used to love riding my 24" down crowded
Manhattan sidewalks, zipping around the pedestrians like cones. You have
to anticipate their moves and leave extra room if possible (in case they
change their minds like you mentioned), and it requires constant mental
processing.

Legally, I’m sure this form of riding would be frowned upon. But in
Manhattan, a cop is more likely to simply stare than to try to do anything
about it… :slight_smile:

Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone jfoss@unicycling.com
www.unicycling.com

Frisbatarianism (n.), The belief that, when you die, your soul goes up on
the roof and gets stuck there.

13

I initially wrote:
>> I often wear a bright red t-shirt with the words on the back that look
>> like those of our firetrucks: KEEP 200 FEET BACK. The bright red makes
>> me more visible from the front, and the words give the right idea to
>> bicyclists who would want to pass.
john_foss@asinet.com writes:
>Great shirt! Sounds perfect for city riding.
Hi, John. Yes, it is!
>
>
>I’m still amazed at your use of short cranks for riding at such close
>quarters with the pedestrians and vehicles of Manhattan. I’ve ridden in
>the environment and I know it sometimes requires instant reaction, as you
>mentioned. I much prefer longer cranks on my big wheel, so I can at least
>turn suddenly if something pops in front of me.
On that Coker, turning suddenly is actually my second option. First I try
to stop and freeze for a few seconds. If I can’t then turn safely, I jump
off carefully.
>
>
>When I had the opportunity, I used to love riding my 24" down crowded
>Manhattan sidewalks, zipping around the pedestrians like cones. You have
>to anticipate their moves and leave extra room if possible (in case they
>change their minds like you mentioned), and it requires constant mental
>processing.
Announcement! JOE MERRILL AND I WILL BE GIVING A WORKSHOP AT THE NUC IN
TORONTO ABOUT CITY RIDING!!! We will be addressing the ponts John just
mentioned above and a whole lot more. Look for it to be posted to the NUC
in coming weeks as we straighten out details.

Like you, John, I love riding thru pedestrians on a 24" or 26" – I always
say it’s like chess, where you have to anticipate moves well in advance.
You also learn to size up the coming block (or, if it’s crowded, block
segment) in order to plan various possibilities. I think this mentality
and the training that occurred naturally are what helped me become a
confident driver some years after I’d taken up uni.
>
>Legally, I’m sure this form of riding would be frowned upon. But in
>Manhattan, a cop is more likely to simply stare than to try to do
>anything about it… :slight_smile:
My favorite cop story: I was riding across Central Park. There are
painted sidewalk signs that read (and illustrate): No Bicycles. One day,
cops on bikes were politely asking bikers to dismount and to walk to the
other end of the park. There were two stations of three cops each, a
quarter mile apart. When I got to the first station, two of the cops
smiled but the third said, “Bikers aren’t allowed here.” I replied, “If I
see any, I’ll tell them.” But not wanting to risk a ticket, I got off and
walked till they were out of sight. Then I hopped on and soon came across
the next three cops. They all smiled and waved as I rode past. It was
annoying that, as I walked my uni for a few hundred yards, rollerbladers
and scooterers were zipping by me; they have far less control than I do
on my 26"!
>
>
>Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone

Likewise, David Stone