Another month has passed and the cycle commute is well under way now this year. 8 full weeks have gone in 2019 and most of it has been an absolute pleasure. The winter has been very kind so far, with only cold temperatures to deal with and the occasional high wind. Also, as a bonus my original commuter is back on the road and going strong (see Double First (Part2)).
Don’t forget to check out my cost tracker (How Much?) to see if the repair bills have blown away my commuting savings or if the cycle commute is sill winning…
It’s really interesting to see all the commutes put together on a map and I found this really cool Strava add-on that overlays them on a map. You can specify a date range and change the type and colour of map between 10 options. It is calledย Heatflaskย and you can see my February journeys all on the map below:
Stats
In a previous blog I mentioned how I love statistics. Well, here a few small ones for the month of February:
- Days Commuted: 20
- Distance Travelled: 692.8
- Elevation: 28,201 ft
- Time: 42h 20mins
- Bikes used: 4
Sadness
Unfortunately, after everything being so pleasant in February, there was really bad news here on the 27th. A cyclist from Livingston was hit by a car and sadly did not survive.ย It was on a single carriageway A road and details about the incident are still vague as the police inquiries are ongoing. I did not know the person involved but it really hit me on Thursday when I heard he had passed away. He was a young, healthy 37 year old father and child, taken all too soon.
Although this highlights the dangers involved in cycling, it needs to be remembered that there are risks in most things we undertake in life. Vehicles are involved in crashes every day with other vehicles, pedestrians and even just on their own. Sadly these can all result in loss of life or serious injury. It is still a rare occurrence that cycle accidents this bad happen here, even though I appreciate it is more common in large cities.
One of the worst things was reading some of the comments online regarding the accident. I had a look at some of them during lunchtime and actually felt sick that there were people out there who could think like that. Is it wise to share the road with people who have such disregard for another human just because they are on a bike?
Yes, I think it definitely is, and things will only improve if cyclists continue to use the roads and others start joining them. Giving up will only make it worse for the ones that remain. I will certainly be continuing for as long as I am able.
- Magene Radar Tail Light - July 18, 2023
- Remembering - June 23, 2023
- School Run Fun - June 19, 2023