Commuting's better by bike ...

Bit of a disparate entry this one, cycling, Olympic dreams and more ‘one’ nonsense.

Another observation from our cycling correspondent:

“I was very amused by a recorded announcement at Waterloo this am. ‘Passengers are reminded that cycles are not allowed on this train. Any passenger with a cycle should pre-book before travelling.’ Verbatim. Which made me wonder if the x % of menstruating women in waterloo were stressing about whether or not they should be boarding the train.”

I observed whether such cycle-restrictions included the water cycle or anyone involved in re-incarnation (the life cycle)?

However, his observation does raise the possibility that such officious train announcements are being made as a consequence of an increase commuters unfamiliar with the train-cycle procedure? This would fit in with observations of an increased use of bikes in London as a consequence of the terrorist atrocities. This can’t be a bad thing. I’ve always maintained that if I lived within an hour’s cycle of my workplace in London then that’s how I’d travel.

But then I’ve maintained a lot of fitness nonsense in the past (q.v. SkinnyMan) and recently I’ve become preoccupied with the plausibility that, in seven years, I could train myself from my current condition to be an Olympic triathlete competing at London 2012.

In the meantime I’m stuck with more woes on the London-Norwich line, this week has been appalling. Downed cables yesterday morning, a train failure and cable problems at Trowse last night and this morning a signalling problem at Bethnal Green. Not to mention carriages with no air conditioning. There’s the possibility of one having their own blog rant section. Regular readers will recall my recent fire on one railway posting and one railway’s response.