I’ve been terrifically impressed by Wellington City Council’s recent intestinal fortitude in pushing ahead with widespread cycle lanes around the city, in spite of vociferous objections from car-loving naysayers.
The number of cycling commuters has increased enormously since they’ve done this, but not been without pushback from the haters. There have been a number of instances of tacks being purposefully left on bike lanes around the city. One cyclist has even made the news recently by macgyvering an anti – tack device, by simply attaching a broom to the front of his bicycle. Nifty, but it’s still depressing that it’s been necessary.
My commute was interrupted last week not by malign forces, but rather the weather turning on me. I was racing to try and make the lights when suddenly a gust of wind caught me, blowing sideways at me from a side street, and I was picked up and summersaulted right over onto my back on the footpath. Those Wellington equinoctial winds are certainly not to be underestimated (I was going to say “not to be sneezed at” but that brought visions of spring pollen and hayfever, not the image I was going for).
A number of fellow cyclists stopped to help me up, which was lovely, and I was too stunned to even be embarrassed. The adrenaline rush got me to work but I was pretty shaky by the time I got there. My bum’s been a bit achy since but I’ve got off pretty lightly. The bicycle has been functional since the accident, although there are the odd sounds of rubbing and squeaking which seem new. I’d happily ignore them but yesterday it started saying “ERROR 503 – contact your bicycle shop for servicing”. I can see a big repair bill in my future. It’s a bit annoying being nagged by my expensive and demanding ebike but I suppose it’s better than poorly timed brake failures or similar.