Barry Heaven

left the building.

Thanks. Probably not best to ask her at the end of a shift!

Thanks Allen. It's not in plaster as the fracture was not all the way through the bone, so using a sling and wrist is in a collar. I'm 55 3/4 so not much different. Accident was entirely my own fault, I misjudged the angle going over a low dropped kerb and bike skidded off it.

Thanks. All advice gratefully received. A good night's sleep would be most welcome!

I fell off my (non-electric) bike two days ago. Got a fractured radius bone near my elbow and lot of internal soft tissue damage in my wrist, otherwise in one piece. Main problem is the pain from the soft tissue damage. Has anyone had a similar accident? I'm wondering how long the pain is likely to last? Typing one-handed...quite slowly.

Going on a bike ride to get away from the wedding.

Is it too much to hope that this will mean cheaper Panasonic batteries? Report: Panasonic to increase li-ion battery production in China — Autoblog Green

I thought this Government were all about cutting red tape and regulation? Why is a Conservative MP even considering introducing yet more regulation? Given that this Government have committed to only introducing more regulation if some other regulation is then repealed I will be interested to find out what that other regulation is going to be.

Best wishes Flecc. Hope you get well soon.

Must be our dominant left-wing liberal media shouting down the minority Conservative media.

I also believe that is the case and any other design generally requires compromise either in the name of utility or fashion.

But fortunately not here: Govt may ban electric bicycles

This is worth looking at. I've found it pretty good: Bicycle Tutor - Bike Repair Video Tutorials

This is very interesting: The Three Laws of Batteries (and a Bonus Zeroth Law): Cleantech News and Analysis « I think everyone here will recognize the Zeroth law: 'The performance of any battery will fall (just) short of our expectations irrespective of the complexity of the device it is powering.':o

Update on its progress: Northern Ireland's compulsory helmet Bill appears doomed | road.cc | The website for pedal powered people: Road cycling, commuting, leisure cycling and racing. Voted the UK's number 1 cycling website at the 2010 BikeBiz awards.

That's good to know. When I bought my Pro Connect with the Alfine 8-speed I was concerned about having to maintain such a complex mechanism. Even the informative Shimano ALFINE « Hubstripping.com site only served to make it look too complicated.

1. Have you ever fallen off or been knocked off a bicycle? - Yes 2. Did you sustain any injuries, minor or serious? - No 3. Did it make you consider wearing a helmet? - Yes But I have come off motorbikes and sustained injuries and that makes it a big yes for helmets for motorbikes and bicycles (but it is for others to make their own choice).

Interesting. Although it has a yellow cord for plugging into electric cars, the other end is a standard 240 volts/13 amp socket into which you could plug an ebike charger. It would, of course, only work if you could plug directly into an on-board charger. Not one near me though unfortunately.

I came across this which, taking it at face value, is the launch of the first common standard for Light Electric Vehicles (including pedelecs). There are some big players behind this including Panasonic and BionX. Maybe this will be the future for pedelecs all sharing compatible systems, including battery charging connectors. Clearly early days for this so will be interesting to see how it develops. EnergyBus Standard (EBS) to be Unveiled in Taipei - ExtraEnergy.org

I think I can cope without swallowing a device to monitor my core body temperature when cycling. Do even the top athletes really need this level of data or is it just technology for the sake of it?

Oops, this seems to be turning into a proper helmet debate!

When I first spoke to Hillers they were a bit bemused until I explained that it only needed a standard socket and consumed about the same power a a laptop computer. Putting it that way gives a quick visualisation of what the chargers do, i.e. you are not plugging in something that is burning kilowatt hours!

That's good to know Flecc, but governments change and there is no harm in making the depth of feeling known, if only for NI's sake.

This bill was approved by the Northern Ireland assembly in January. It now goes to their Environment Committee, after which it may become law and will be the first part of the UK to have compulsory wearing of helmets. I always wear a helmet but I do believe it shouldn't be compulsory. This article has a link to a petition organised by the CTC and Sustrans and can be signed by anyone in the UK: Cycling groups launch petition against Northern Ireland bike helmet law | Matthew Sparkes | Environment | guardian.co.uk

I took a ride today to Hillers: A H Hilllers - Quality local produce farmshop garden cafe display gardens in Warwickshire. A nice little places with a farm shop, gift shop, cafe and gardens. I rang ahead and asked if they were ok with me charging my battery while I had lunch at the cafe. They were agreeable and very happy to accommodate. They arranged for me to plug it in in a little locked back office. I wonder if there is some means of creating a list of businesses that we know of that are happy to charge batteries? Sounds like a win-win. For a very small cost they get more custom and we get batteries charged for an increased riding range.