The title sums up the time since I last posted.
I went to the Doctor's on Thursday to see about my knee and was signed off work for 2 weeks. Yes, another 2 weeks.
Fortunately for my sanity, I have work at home I can be doing. I need it to take my mind away from daytime TV. I mean there is only so much Jeremy Kyle anyone can watch- about 0.5 nanoseconds is I think the legal limit. I think being water boarded by the CIA would be preferable to watching daytime TV.
My knee has apparently suffered damage to the medial ligaments as a result of the accident a month ago today. This is the longest I have been unable to cycle or work since starting to cycle again some 9 years ago. Ironically, cycling hurts my knee less than walking does, but still causes a considerable amount of pain. Even walking to the newsagents at the end of the road is painful.I can however drive my car ok.
Why have I been signed off work? Mainly because of the problems getting to / from work. I can't walk to/ from train station or use the stairs without hurting my knee. I can't cycle to work for similar reasons and it is not reasonably practicable to drive to/ from work as I work in Westminster. Therefore I am stuck at home at present.
It is even more frustrating as I am due to be meeting a number of old friends this coming week for drinks or next week. They will have to be given a miss. Even if I could get to the pubs,a night in town standing drinking etc will do it no good.
What have I done then I hear you ask? Well, I've watched loads of rubbish on the TV. I've planned my cycling around the world trip in minute detail, well everything except how to fund it. Anyone fancy donating say a years salary plus to cover my lost wages and the expenses of such a trip. Who said that you'll have a whip round if I promise not to return?
So, I've no cycling to write about at present. What can I write about? Well I could go on about Newcastle United being top of the Championship (the oldest league in the world) and being 4 points ahead of the 2nd placed side and 10 points ahead of 3rd and 13 points ahead of the side outside the play off places. I could boast and say its nice to see one North East side doing well, but that would be unfair on all the Sunderland and Middlesbrough fans I know- as I know very few, its ok, i will boast about it. Assuming my leg is ok, Tom and I are off to Barnsley next Saturday to see Newcastle. It'll be the suited and booted look though as we are in the executive boxes. (Thanks Sue & John!). We are also staying there for the night (Thanks again Sue & John),so I'm hoping we can avoid a defeat as I don't fancy a night of having the mickey taken out of me.
What else is there to say, other than I want to ride my bicycle.
Oh, and thanks to everyone who has donated so far. It is much appreciated.
Thanks
Peter
I Fought The LAW (International Version)
This Time with the LAPD
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Busy Doing Nothing
Well that seems to sum up the week so far. I'm no longer able to ride my bike. My knee injury has got worse, so after struggling home from work on the bike on Monday, I had to go by public transport on Tuesday. (Reminder to self- don't do it again! Public transport at rush hour is surely contrary to the Human Rights Act. It is cruel inhumane and degrading treatment is it not?). It was quite surprising how much activity you do whilst getting public transport to work. I thought it would rest my knee, but with the walking to/ from stations, all the steps, the changing trains etc, it made my knee worse. I made arrangements to work from home today (Wednesday) so took my laptop etc home with me on Tuesday night. It did serve as a reminder to me why I like cycling to work, even taking into account the risk of accidents, the rain and the cold etc.
The other reason for the headline describes the traffic last night in East London. I was going to watch Orient v Gilingham, but owing to some bloke on a building threatening to jump off, the police shut the A12 heading out of town from 14:30 until midnight. This is a 3 lane each way road and is the main road out of London to the North East/ East of London. It was closed from the turning near Orient's ground, so the traffic was gridlocked. It took me 2 hours and around 21 miles to do a journey that should be 7 miles and about 20 minutes. I only got to the ground because I have learned a lot of the back streets of London by cycling around them over the last few years. The traffic was still grid locked after the game and it took me 2 hours to get home after the game.
Its amazing that one person sitting on a roof can be allowed to cause so much chaos for so long.Am I being cruel in saying the "trained" police negotiators can't be very good if it took them around 9 hours to get the bloke to come down. Surely it would have been quicker to persuade him to jump.
The Gillingham team had to play in Orient's away kit as their team bus was stuck in the traffic. Also, when Gillingham named their team the obligatory 1 hour before the game, 3 of the players named had not arrived at the ground. If they had failed to arrive, Gillingham would have been forced to make 3 substitutions before kick off. The crowd was 1-2000 down on expectation because of the traffic situation.
So busy doing nothing seems apt.
As for my knee, I am going to the doctor's first thing on Thursday morning to see what they've got to say about it. I can hazard a guess that part of it is to rest the knee and not cycle for at least the next week. :-(
I need to spend some time trying to drum up sponsorship monies to www.firstgiving.com/peterbennett over the next few days.
The other reason for the headline describes the traffic last night in East London. I was going to watch Orient v Gilingham, but owing to some bloke on a building threatening to jump off, the police shut the A12 heading out of town from 14:30 until midnight. This is a 3 lane each way road and is the main road out of London to the North East/ East of London. It was closed from the turning near Orient's ground, so the traffic was gridlocked. It took me 2 hours and around 21 miles to do a journey that should be 7 miles and about 20 minutes. I only got to the ground because I have learned a lot of the back streets of London by cycling around them over the last few years. The traffic was still grid locked after the game and it took me 2 hours to get home after the game.
Its amazing that one person sitting on a roof can be allowed to cause so much chaos for so long.Am I being cruel in saying the "trained" police negotiators can't be very good if it took them around 9 hours to get the bloke to come down. Surely it would have been quicker to persuade him to jump.
The Gillingham team had to play in Orient's away kit as their team bus was stuck in the traffic. Also, when Gillingham named their team the obligatory 1 hour before the game, 3 of the players named had not arrived at the ground. If they had failed to arrive, Gillingham would have been forced to make 3 substitutions before kick off. The crowd was 1-2000 down on expectation because of the traffic situation.
So busy doing nothing seems apt.
As for my knee, I am going to the doctor's first thing on Thursday morning to see what they've got to say about it. I can hazard a guess that part of it is to rest the knee and not cycle for at least the next week. :-(
I need to spend some time trying to drum up sponsorship monies to www.firstgiving.com/peterbennett over the next few days.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Crash, Crash 48 Crash
The title refers to cycling matters and not the world economy. Also, its only a second Crash, not the 48th
The news on the cycling front is less positive than I had hoped. I have not managed more than two successive days riding since my last blog. The injuries from my accident are taking longer to heal than I anticipated. The whiplash type injuries are slowly healing, but still cause some pain and discomfort, especially if I sit at my desk for a lengthy period of time, or if I try to reach behind me.
However, what is causing me more concern is my knee. I got a knock on it when I came off my bike on 5th November, but it seemed to be nothing. However, it has gradually worsened. I went out for a ride in the rain yesterday and managed a very slow 30 miles with Drew and his son Sam. However, by the time I got home, my knee was quite painful. Cycling to and from work today has aggravated the knee. I think that tomorrow I will be using a geared bike instead of my fixed wheel bike to allow me to rest the knee by freewheeling at times.
I have arranged an appointment with my GP for this coming Thursday to discuss the problems with my knee. I fear the GP will say that I need to rest the knee and have to stop cycling to work.The thought of travelling by the tube at rush hour is enough to make one go off sick again. (If my boss is reading this, I'm only joking).
As to the title of this thread, I am pleased to say it wasn't me that ended up on lying in the road this time. Shortly after commencing our ride yesterday, an idiot in a car overtook the 3 of us cycling in a line and IMMEDIATELY then turned left across my path, causing me to take evasive action to avoid being hit by his car and as a result poor Sam collided with my bike and ended up on the road. We then had the farcical situation of the driver of the car ( who turns out to be a consultant paediatric surgeon) initially refusing to stop, then refusing to provide his details and then trying to reverse his car at Sam to get away from the scene, before driving his car against me as I stood in front of the car on the phone to the police.
When the police arrived, the simply took names and addresses and said that was the end of their involvement. So it seems the moral of this is that if you want to assault or kill someone and get away with it, you use a car and the police take no action. At a brief count, I came up with the following offences:
1. Careless driving for the left turn across our path.
2. Failing to provide name and address after an accident.
3. Attempting to leave the scene of the accident (an attempted fail to stop?).
4. Careless driving for reversing the car into Sam as he tried to leave (I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt in that I am assuming it was not deliberate).
5. Common assault for driving his car forward into me as I stood in front of him on the phone to the police.
To all these offences there were at least 3 witnesses, i.e. myself, Sam and Drew. The police however take no action. Is it any wonder there are so many accidents on the road if there is so little chance of being prosecuted.
The good news is that I have now raised at least $245 sponsorship monies, although I think that the correct figure may be $260. I need to check with first giving. I need to get the total up to at least $500 before Christmas, so please dig deeply now. Instead of sending Christmas Cards, why not donate the monies to this cause.
The news on the cycling front is less positive than I had hoped. I have not managed more than two successive days riding since my last blog. The injuries from my accident are taking longer to heal than I anticipated. The whiplash type injuries are slowly healing, but still cause some pain and discomfort, especially if I sit at my desk for a lengthy period of time, or if I try to reach behind me.
However, what is causing me more concern is my knee. I got a knock on it when I came off my bike on 5th November, but it seemed to be nothing. However, it has gradually worsened. I went out for a ride in the rain yesterday and managed a very slow 30 miles with Drew and his son Sam. However, by the time I got home, my knee was quite painful. Cycling to and from work today has aggravated the knee. I think that tomorrow I will be using a geared bike instead of my fixed wheel bike to allow me to rest the knee by freewheeling at times.
I have arranged an appointment with my GP for this coming Thursday to discuss the problems with my knee. I fear the GP will say that I need to rest the knee and have to stop cycling to work.The thought of travelling by the tube at rush hour is enough to make one go off sick again. (If my boss is reading this, I'm only joking).
As to the title of this thread, I am pleased to say it wasn't me that ended up on lying in the road this time. Shortly after commencing our ride yesterday, an idiot in a car overtook the 3 of us cycling in a line and IMMEDIATELY then turned left across my path, causing me to take evasive action to avoid being hit by his car and as a result poor Sam collided with my bike and ended up on the road. We then had the farcical situation of the driver of the car ( who turns out to be a consultant paediatric surgeon) initially refusing to stop, then refusing to provide his details and then trying to reverse his car at Sam to get away from the scene, before driving his car against me as I stood in front of the car on the phone to the police.
When the police arrived, the simply took names and addresses and said that was the end of their involvement. So it seems the moral of this is that if you want to assault or kill someone and get away with it, you use a car and the police take no action. At a brief count, I came up with the following offences:
1. Careless driving for the left turn across our path.
2. Failing to provide name and address after an accident.
3. Attempting to leave the scene of the accident (an attempted fail to stop?).
4. Careless driving for reversing the car into Sam as he tried to leave (I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt in that I am assuming it was not deliberate).
5. Common assault for driving his car forward into me as I stood in front of him on the phone to the police.
To all these offences there were at least 3 witnesses, i.e. myself, Sam and Drew. The police however take no action. Is it any wonder there are so many accidents on the road if there is so little chance of being prosecuted.
The good news is that I have now raised at least $245 sponsorship monies, although I think that the correct figure may be $260. I need to check with first giving. I need to get the total up to at least $500 before Christmas, so please dig deeply now. Instead of sending Christmas Cards, why not donate the monies to this cause.
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