Posts Tagged ‘ Whitley Bay ’

Number Eleven - the policeman: Hi-viz? Check! Sturdy boots with steel toe-caps? Check! Helmet? Check! Radio and earpiece for receiving instructions from The Matrix? Check! Hand cuffs? Check! Sensible long trousers? Check! Big grin - can’t believe he’s getting paid to ride a bike? Check! OK - so compared with our previous people in everyday clothing, you might think he’s decked out...
Read more »

Warm September afternoon Light breezes and long shadows This is an Indian summer
Read more »

You’re probably familiar with the scene - riding alongside a row of parked cars and out far enough to give you at least a chance if a door should open unexpectedly. Behind you is another car, and it sounds like the driver’s getting impatient. The row of parked cars comes to an end, but only...
Read more »

Number Five - The Retro Bicycle Birthday Girl: Rod brakes? Check! Hub dynamo? Check! Basket tied up with a ribbon? Check! Regular clothes for a warm summer’s evening? Check! Glasses perched on top of head? Check! Chain guard? Check! Old bike in lovely condition, which was a birthday present from Boyfriend, inducing a big grin? Check! “Really comfortable to ride, especially the...
Read more »

Sometimes when I get excited, I get my mucking fords wuddled. Like today - I understand that they used to run simple handicraft production in asylums. Yes, they had psychopaths in their workshops. Yet this roofer seems to have made a workshop on the cyclepath: Apparently, if he’d used his customer’s driveway, he’d have been “in the way”. Whereas...
Read more »

Number Four - The Busy Mum: Extremely sensible, big-grin inducing bike? Check! Sensible luggage capacity? Check! Sensible, every-day clothes? Check! Cotton-bag-over-shoulder-flower-in-hair? Check! Sleeve of child’s raincoat poking out of that bag? Check! Handlebar mounted child seat? Check! Child? Fail! Actually, the child was just out of camera shot on his / her (what do I know?) own bike. Probably less than...
Read more »

Number Three - The Chatty Shopper: Sensible fleecy jumper for our mid-summer weather? Check! Non-Lycra jeans? Check! Hand bag securely over one shoulder? Check! Sensible cycling shoes? Check! HUGE (I mean really HUGE!) pannier bags? Check! Basket on the front? Check! Unlike when driving a car: Time, opportunity and motive to stop and shoot the breeze? Check!
Read more »

Seen in Whitley Bay last weekend - a bike with a nice big lock: Nice sensible bike - pannier bags and a basket at the front. Ideal for shopping trips. And the owner has secured it to these nice wibbly-wobbly bike stands. You can probably see the problem though, can’t you? That lock is just HUGE, and it only...
Read more »

Number Two - The Spirit Of ‘68: Doctor Marten’s boots? Check! Blue jeans? Check! Velvet jacket? Check! Floral print shirt? Check! Shoulder-length silver hair escaping from hippie-trail hat (probably original)? Check! Shoulder / messenger bag full of books, notepads & pens? Check! Bike that often has shopping on the rack & hanging from the handlebars? Check! It could only be local poet,...
Read more »

Number One - the vicar who lives around the corner: Shirt & dog-collar? Check! Appropriately summery jacket? Check! Ordinary trousers? Check! Sandals? Check! Sandals without socks? Fail! Obviously a foreigner or some sort of degenerate leftie. Helmet worn as an ironic fashion accessory rather than to actually do anything? Check! Sensible bike? Check! Bag hanging from handle bars? Check!
Read more »