Hmm.

[ewt]

Been looking at bike stuff this afternoon, particularly pannier racks/rack packs.

Are there no ethical ones? They all seem to be made out of various types of nylon, it looks like you have to pay about £30 for anything that has decent pockets and versatility, and they're probably all made by slave labour by toddlers in nobodyknowswhereistan.

Maybe I shall make my own. The rack on the Strida is not as large as the standard ones anyway, so it might be better that way. I don't think I have the skill (or materials? It's the seam taping that would be getting in the way...) to achieve full waterproofness with recycled waterproofs from second-hand shops, but I could at least make something that is fairly water-resistant.

Have also been looking at bike lights. It seems to be a matter of "decide how much you want to spend, then look for the best lights you can get in that price range", because you can pay anywhere from hardly anything to £400 for a front light. Lights that are worth more than the bicycle are probably not a good investment for me; lights that are going to fall apart or require stupid small non-rechargeable batteries are definitely a bad investment for me. There's still a large range in between, though.

Must find my cycle maps. TFL is nice but requires me to do an awful lot of planning of where I want to go, whereas maps can be shoved into a pannier (once I have a pannier...) and consulted as and when I need them.

This Saturday and Sunday the DLR is broken between Mudchute and Canary Wharf, and both days I need to get places. I'm wondering about cycling to Canary Wharf instead - it isn't far - and either locking the bike up there or taking it with me.

Comments

[naath.livejournal.com]

That is completely untrue.

Dynamo lights which turn off immediately on stopping are illegal (technically). However dynamo lights with a capacitor which remain on for a few minutes after stopping are entirely legal and not much more expensive than decent normal lights. In any case you can fulfil the legal requirement with any crappy LED light if you feel the need and then get a decent light for seeing with.

Of course the law on this point is entirely insane - there is no reason that I need a light in town (which is well lit) except that motorists are apparently too stupid or too blind to observe bicycles with no lights although they have bright seeing-by lights in addition to the street lights I am using to observe my surroundings with no difficulty - indeed motorists who can't see well enough to see me probably can't see well enough to see such other obstacles as pedestrians, parked cars, and the edge of the road.

[keira-online.livejournal.com]

In that case, don't cycle across Magdelen Bridge in Oxford. Or anywhere else in Oxford city centre.
The Cycle police are out again. And will fine you if you are caught cycling after dark with no lights.

You also agreed with my post, after saying it was untrue. Pure dynomo lights (with no capacitor) are illegal. The strange things I refered to are the capacitors.

[naath.livejournal.com]

I poses lights - although I've never seen police stop people for not using them. Of course, maybe I should take pains to be arrested for not having lights since apparently it is only possible to change the law by arguing one's case in court.

I've generally thought of dynamo lights as having stand lights because, well, dur if you wanted lights you are going to want them whilst waiting at junctions.