The right Honorable Gentleman may recall his earlier years when he would like the common man use a bicycle as a means of transport . Those days , we cyclists would find that getting about was less stressful . In the comfort of the limousine you are required to use by the " Security Services " you will be unaware of the " Battlefield " that the roads have become in recent years . No doubt most of your journeys are spent dealing with important paperwork or in conversation with Dignatories and advisers . The time will have passed quickly since you will have had the road cleared by the escort , but even more to the point you will not have seen cyclists along these routes .
"The Times " campaign " Cities fit for Cycling " may have prompted you to allocate £15m to London projects , earlier this year , some cynics may have observed this as an attempt to buy votes for Boris Johnson in his bid for re election , who knows ? Fact is your Government in slashing " Budgets " removed a great many Cycling Initiatives last year that would have influenced many people to use the bike as transport . As a Government desperate to balance the Budget , a key weapon, is the way it taxes Fuel . Progressive rises mean that " Jo Public and his family " are being unfairly squeezed in the race to fill Government Coffers ! Amusing to see those who can afford the Fuel receiving Tax Reductions in the latest budget !
When you go on your holidays this year , you will no doubt , try to act like a normal family , and perhaps you will ride a bike . That experience will not compare to that experienced on a daily basis by those you govern . Where you will have a security cordon to protect your family , " Jill Public " will be surrounded by those ensconced in a " ton of metal " with scant regard for anything other than getting to that appointment that they set out for , far too late , as usual ! Cyclists have become " Mobile street furniture " to many , and " Road kill " to others . Indeed if you were to read " The Cycling Silk " blog , you would see that the Judiciary regard the " Sun was in my eyes , your honor " as an acceptable excuse for running down and even killing Cyclists !
You will see my comment there , suggesting that ONLY when you , or , your ministers suffer personal loss will there be a change in the Governments attitude to the dangers Everyday Cyclists are surrounded by on a daily basis . In fact i read recently that one woman feels that she would prefer to risk " The Taliban " rather than ride English roads , since she feels the real terrorists are in vehicles . With Families struggling to make " Ends meet " how many will have considered Cycling as an alternative mode of transport and rejected this since they do not wish to leave their family destitute when they are struck down ?
In the near future , after the Olympics , you will see the Paralympics . There , will be many competing from a variety of Nations whose Service Personnel saw action in Yugoslavia , Iraq & Afghanistan . Many of these competitors , having served their nation in " Harm's Way " , will have used sport and Cycling as a means of Rehabilitation and reached such a high standard that they met the qualification standards and are now serving their country once again in the Sporting Arena . Currently there are many from " Help4Heroes of the UK and Wounded Warrior Project engaged in the " Race Across America " ! Doing very well compared to " Able bodied Competitors according to the Media !
Do you realize that there are many Adaptive Athletes that met the Paralympic Standards but due to the lack of " Funds / Sponsors " they will not be at the London 2012 Paralympics ? Should any of these be from the British Armed forces , then this is a disgraceful and neglectful way to repay the dedication of those that served their nation . War has only one winner ! Those who invest their money in the " Armaments Industries "! It serves their purposes to see conflict in a world , that has no need for Conflict ! Fact is if you follow the money trail you will see that some of these people or corporations are reinvesting their Ill gotten Profits in the " Rehabilitation Industries " ! For them a " Win Win situation "!
With people taking the attitude that a Cyclist is an accident awaiting a disaster scenario it is a time , long overdue for you and your Government to ACT ! Yes we ALL heard you express your concerns in February when " Cities fit for Cycling was launched , but in examining your conscience , can you really point to anything that caused a change of attitude by the Motoring Lobby ?
Words mean nothing to " Mr White Van Man " or those that drive with the " mobile phone " glued to the ear as they eat their lunch . Nor do they mean anything to those drivers that regularly exceed the 30mph even in 20mph zones or around schools . Revision of the " Highway Code " and " penalties " for striking Vulnerable Road Users , implementing New Driving Licence Standards and Renewing the Licence after 5 years use could be a step in the right direction but this takes time and resources . However it will create jobs and perhaps produce revenue where people choose to continue to drive with disregard to others !
As an Interim measure the introduction of 20MPH limits in ALL urban areas will force vehicles to be more careful around Vulnerable Road Users and perhaps there will be less of the " Sun was in my Eyes Nonsense"!
Cyclists have a right to LIFE and consideration as Human beings that share the roads rather than as the nuisance that disrupts the traffic when so many were already late leaving for their " Important Appointment " !
Time you put Road Safety higher on your list of concerns ! ACTION please , not more words !
As a volunteer at ATHENS 2004 Events , i enjoyed the novelty of riding their roads BUT i am not looking forward to August in London ! How anyone can enjoy London Roads is beyond my comprehension !
SAFE PASSING 101
Friday, June 22, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
LANCE ARMSTRONG again ?
Round and around we go , where this story will end , nobody knows !
Will post my comments to various blogsites here :
Charles Pelkey writes a balanced view of the current issues and here is his site :
http://redkiteprayer.com/2012/06/the-explainer-just-when-i-thought-i-was-out-they-pull-me-back-in/comment-page-1/#comment-345604
then my comment :
" EVERY US Cycle Racer must be " pissed " about their " Annual Licence Fees " being used by " USADA & others " to persue " Ancient History "!
An unknown . "tyrant spelt tygart " is grandstanding for whose benefit ?
Lance has won and placed in several Triathlons so we aLL know he has the abilities he has claimed over the years .
Jealousy comes in many forms and if i was Lance i would walk away and ignore these poor specimens of humanity .
My blog post relates the news about this latest traversy of justice but personally i wish he would " Sue the ass off all involved " , it would win him Millions , though i doubt it would contribute to his wellbeing as a person !
Lance you are a role model for many , so ignore the hate and vilification coming your way ! As a service to those accusers , send them a copy of " IF " that poem that many use to calm the outrages they suffer in their lives ! "
Went onto the Mushroomers thread on this subject at cyclingnews with this comment :
Received this reply amongst many :
" Yeah, I love that poem!
" IF you can keep your red blood cell count high when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on three weeks of racing,
If you can trust your hemotologist when all in The Clinic doubt you,
But scorn and demean them for their doubting too;
If you can storm up an HC col and not be tired,
Or lie about your friends' testimony, what's one more lie?
Or being hated, don't give way to haters,
And yet don't show compassion, nor kindness:
If you can dream big, and believe in miracles;
If you like your credibility, even though you have none;
If you can meet with Ferrari and Bruyneel
And treat those two cheats just the same;
If you can bear to hear your doctor
retroactively produce a TUE;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one night of hookers and blow,
And test positive for PED's,
And never breathe a word about your payment to the UCI;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To accept testosterone, HGH, and EPO,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except these drugs and an extra litre of blood which says to them: 'Chaarge!'
If you can talk to the crowds in Paris and keep a straight face,
' Or ride up mountains with domestiques holding a GC man's pace,
if neither foes nor so-called friends can stand you,
If all men work for you, but none deserve your respect;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of lying to cancer patients,
Yours is a special kind of evil,
And - which is more - you'll be a cheating, lying, disgraced so-called 7 time Tour de France winner, my son!
This guy must have spent the last generation dreaming this up !
FATCYCLIST.com spends a lot of time raising monies for a variety of causes , including LiveSTRONG and World Bike Relief . With these events " Fatty " has become friendly with LANCE and Johan Bruyneel and holds them in high esteem . In Fatty's most recent blog he posted the following Quote : " By their Fruits you will know them " ( matthew 7:16 ) ! Very appropriate since both these Guys have done Astonishing Work for others whilst busy with their " Day Job "!
My Comment to " Fatcyclist.com ":
" My 100MON this year ,was on L'Alpe d'Huez , once again ,with the Dutch Cancer Fundraiser ! This year on both the Wednesday & Thursday and i exceeded my own expectations simply because i was inspired and motivated by a GREAT CYCLIST !
I was there in 2005 when Lance won the ITT race up this climb , even caused the " Clown " that pushed him to be detained by the Gendarmerie ! Lance chose not to press charges .
Even more to the point , whilst Fatty rode as a guest with Lance and the Team , i on so many occasions over the years , have ridden uninvited , alongside Lance . Never once did he complain and in fact deflected team mates who would have acted on his behalf . Always found him gracious towards others when time allowed BUT time management was one of his secrets !
Meticulous in the extreme , he was known as " Mr Millimetre " since he was always looking for improvements in every aspect of his Equipment , Training and Team ! One hard task Master that would not accept a lower standard than 110% !
Little wonder that there are those that fell by the way side since they were unable to keep pace . We all think we are better than we are , some take it badly , others recognise their short comings .
Tall Poppy syndrome is alive and well throughout the world BUT particularly in SPORT ! Nobody likes to come in second and there are so many out there that feel " Short Cuts " are the way to go !WRONG !
Currently "The Fox " guarding the " Hen House " seems to be that ALL SPORT suffers from and until there is a " Moratorium " when ALL past and present Athletes can come out of the closet we will continue to see " finger pointing " !
Lance has returned to Triathlon and has succeeded through effort and training in gaining the top step of the Podium , being not the best runner in the world , he has trained hard for his success >
To those doubting him " SHAME ON YOU " , to those in the Government Agencies " WHAT DO YOU DO TO MAKE THIS A BETTER WORLD "?
To those racing against him " WHAT IS YOUR TRAINING REGIME "? Try harder and believe in your selves !
As regards Lance's Past , who gives a fig , as regards his work with LiveSTRONG , do not let the naysayers interrupt the GOOD WORKS there !
LiveSTRONG works will be remembered long after the " Le Tour " fades into obscurity !
Fatty as usual you post from the heart and the road you have chosen will not sit well with those that i call " Mushrooms "! "
39 Stone Cyclist has contributed to Fatcyclist on several occasions and i have added the above comment to his blog post on the " USADA star chamber , travesty of Justice " !
Will post my comments to various blogsites here :
Charles Pelkey writes a balanced view of the current issues and here is his site :
then my comment :
" EVERY US Cycle Racer must be " pissed " about their " Annual Licence Fees " being used by " USADA & others " to persue " Ancient History "!
An unknown . "tyrant spelt tygart " is grandstanding for whose benefit ?
Lance has won and placed in several Triathlons so we aLL know he has the abilities he has claimed over the years .
Jealousy comes in many forms and if i was Lance i would walk away and ignore these poor specimens of humanity .
My blog post relates the news about this latest traversy of justice but personally i wish he would " Sue the ass off all involved " , it would win him Millions , though i doubt it would contribute to his wellbeing as a person !
Lance you are a role model for many , so ignore the hate and vilification coming your way ! As a service to those accusers , send them a copy of " IF " that poem that many use to calm the outrages they suffer in their lives ! "
Went onto the Mushroomers thread on this subject at cyclingnews with this comment :
" As i stated in " Skippyblogging " , if i were Lance
i would send ALL his accusers a copy of " IF "!
Having won a 70.3 and podiumed several times there is nothing more to prove !
Having won a 70.3 and podiumed several times there is nothing more to prove !
http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?p=902815#post902815
" Lance walk away , head held high ! Certainly you are head and shoulders above the accusers and regardless of what you do , there will always be those " mushrooms " that reek of jealousy ! "
" Lance walk away , head held high ! Certainly you are head and shoulders above the accusers and regardless of what you do , there will always be those " mushrooms " that reek of jealousy ! "
Received this reply amongst many :
" Yeah, I love that poem!
" IF you can keep your red blood cell count high when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on three weeks of racing,
If you can trust your hemotologist when all in The Clinic doubt you,
But scorn and demean them for their doubting too;
If you can storm up an HC col and not be tired,
Or lie about your friends' testimony, what's one more lie?
Or being hated, don't give way to haters,
And yet don't show compassion, nor kindness:
If you can dream big, and believe in miracles;
If you like your credibility, even though you have none;
If you can meet with Ferrari and Bruyneel
And treat those two cheats just the same;
If you can bear to hear your doctor
retroactively produce a TUE;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one night of hookers and blow,
And test positive for PED's,
And never breathe a word about your payment to the UCI;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To accept testosterone, HGH, and EPO,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except these drugs and an extra litre of blood which says to them: 'Chaarge!'
If you can talk to the crowds in Paris and keep a straight face,
' Or ride up mountains with domestiques holding a GC man's pace,
if neither foes nor so-called friends can stand you,
If all men work for you, but none deserve your respect;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of lying to cancer patients,
Yours is a special kind of evil,
And - which is more - you'll be a cheating, lying, disgraced so-called 7 time Tour de France winner, my son!
This guy must have spent the last generation dreaming this up !
FATCYCLIST.com spends a lot of time raising monies for a variety of causes , including LiveSTRONG and World Bike Relief . With these events " Fatty " has become friendly with LANCE and Johan Bruyneel and holds them in high esteem . In Fatty's most recent blog he posted the following Quote : " By their Fruits you will know them " ( matthew 7:16 ) ! Very appropriate since both these Guys have done Astonishing Work for others whilst busy with their " Day Job "!
My Comment to " Fatcyclist.com ":
" My 100MON this year ,was on L'Alpe d'Huez , once again ,with the Dutch Cancer Fundraiser ! This year on both the Wednesday & Thursday and i exceeded my own expectations simply because i was inspired and motivated by a GREAT CYCLIST !
I was there in 2005 when Lance won the ITT race up this climb , even caused the " Clown " that pushed him to be detained by the Gendarmerie ! Lance chose not to press charges .
Even more to the point , whilst Fatty rode as a guest with Lance and the Team , i on so many occasions over the years , have ridden uninvited , alongside Lance . Never once did he complain and in fact deflected team mates who would have acted on his behalf . Always found him gracious towards others when time allowed BUT time management was one of his secrets !
Meticulous in the extreme , he was known as " Mr Millimetre " since he was always looking for improvements in every aspect of his Equipment , Training and Team ! One hard task Master that would not accept a lower standard than 110% !
Little wonder that there are those that fell by the way side since they were unable to keep pace . We all think we are better than we are , some take it badly , others recognise their short comings .
Tall Poppy syndrome is alive and well throughout the world BUT particularly in SPORT ! Nobody likes to come in second and there are so many out there that feel " Short Cuts " are the way to go !WRONG !
Currently "The Fox " guarding the " Hen House " seems to be that ALL SPORT suffers from and until there is a " Moratorium " when ALL past and present Athletes can come out of the closet we will continue to see " finger pointing " !
Lance has returned to Triathlon and has succeeded through effort and training in gaining the top step of the Podium , being not the best runner in the world , he has trained hard for his success >
To those doubting him " SHAME ON YOU " , to those in the Government Agencies " WHAT DO YOU DO TO MAKE THIS A BETTER WORLD "?
To those racing against him " WHAT IS YOUR TRAINING REGIME "? Try harder and believe in your selves !
As regards Lance's Past , who gives a fig , as regards his work with LiveSTRONG , do not let the naysayers interrupt the GOOD WORKS there !
LiveSTRONG works will be remembered long after the " Le Tour " fades into obscurity !
Fatty as usual you post from the heart and the road you have chosen will not sit well with those that i call " Mushrooms "! "
39 Stone Cyclist has contributed to Fatcyclist on several occasions and i have added the above comment to his blog post on the " USADA star chamber , travesty of Justice " !
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