Posts by Martin Roberts
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Forgot something I used last night - a cycle cap under the helmet.
Mostly for the brim to keep the rain off my glasses, but also for protecting the pate from water falling through the ventilation. On sun-strike days the brim pulls down low to minimise glare (no prescription sunnies here).
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I am definitely in the street clothes category but do change into shorts for my commute and choose woolen shirts if I go > 5kms and can't shower. I cannot wear the 'sporty' plastic shirts Russell likes because they stink before I leave the house. I have considered padded undershorts if I can get away for some touring.
I recently bought some heavy-duty Cactus Supershorts to see how they last, since a few years in the saddle tends to wear through the crotch on denim. Still wearing them in after about a month, but would prefer that they cover my knees which work hard and deserve cosseting.
On my feet I wear the same boots I wear for everthing else, which happen to be steel-capped as that's what was in the outlet store last time I replaced them. I need the exercise, so don't mind that they are heavy or that I'm getting less efficiency without clipping in. Street-ready mtb shoes seem to be getting cheaper, but can I wear them in the backyard clay then straight onto the bike?
For rain I found a $20 poncho at the Avondale market that was good on my big, heavy, upright shopping bike. It hooks over the handlebars, allowing enough air underneath to avoid the usual problem of being wetter inside than out. The wind resistance was less than I expected, too. I did use lycra-ish tights up in Vancouver, for staying warm when wet. Was a bit shy, so bought a loose size.
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Hard News: Neither fish nor fowl, in reply to Damian Christie,
I find that putting my foot down before riding those crosswalks satisfies most reluctant-to-slow drivers. I scheme to walk super-slow in front of cars who demand I dismount, but in practise the next car stops cheerfully and I don't want to hold them up. (Should I be worried how much time I spend planning cycle-to-rule campaigns to show up the inconsistent road code?)
The crossing by Motat (heading outbound) has ugly sightlines, which require looking 170 degrees over your right shoulder through a chainlink fence while cycling uphill. I assume that drivers on the off-ramp have similar difficulty seeing through the fence, but try to reserve enough momentum to minimise the awkward both-stopping moments.
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Has there been an increase recently in cycling through pedestrian light signals around Auckland? Perhaps driven by increased pedestrian time at the CBD intersections? Etiquette seems to be that you let the pedestrians go first then slowly ride through the space behind the initial rush. I find that this puts me nicely into empty road space on Queen St, which I hope helps everybody.
I agree that cyclists should yield to pedestrians, and recognise their greater vulnerability. Perhaps we need a Rule Zero - Don't Kill.
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Legal Beagle: Kim Dotcom: Questions and Answers, in reply to Sacha,
Conspiracy is probably one of those words which doesn't necessarily mean what I thought it did.
I recall being surprised that Money Laundering includes any movement across borders of money you knew to be illegally obtained. I had thought some sort of secrecy or furtive dealings had to be involved, but apparently not.
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When I was at university, I married my then-boyfriend so that he could have access to a student allowance.
Most of my friends who have gotten married did so after living together for many years, and co-incidentally had kids real soon afterwards. A church can pretend that these couples are (belatedly) conforming to True Marriage (TM), but same-sex marriage explodes that illusion and is thus more threatening. Illusion, however, is not reputed to set us free.
Marriage as practised in the rest of NZ has long since diverged from the ideals many feel are threatened by this Bill. I have found it constructive to point this out in my church communities.
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Wow, that brings back memories. Auckland Uni Orientation 1994, iirc. 3 The Hard Way then Supergroove blew my mind and I mostly sat out the Muttonbirds to catch my breath.
First live rap I had ever encountered, incongrously mixed with my first ever crowd surf and fluoro pink shorts that should have been left in the 1980s.
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Hard News: The not-so-Evil Empire, in reply to JonathanM,
Can you buy each app with a separate login, then onsell a login as proxy for an app? And if so, would Apple authorise an app to automate the process?
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I do not own, nor have I ever owned, sequin pants.
You have my sympathies.
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Cracker: Audience wanted for lively TV discussion, in reply to st ephen,
despite their cycle paths and public transport
Maybe they don't hang their laundry outside.