FosseWay wrote: ↑Fri Jul 02, 2021 07:05
^^ This kind of thing exemplifies why it's daft trying to apply speed limits to bicycles. I don't know about Austria, but that kind of road in the UK or Germany would probably have a 60 mph or 90-100 km/h speed limit - in other words, more or less the speed you were doing. It sounds from what you say that you were happy with the surface etc. and were fully in control, so why not make use of the road. But if it had been a different NSL road, different rider, different bike, the speed would have been no less legal but could have been a whole lot more risky. That differentiation can only really be made by a person (cop) on the ground, not by a speed camera or similar.
The same is true tbh on roads with 30 mph limits. There are more places in my general area where I'd wipe out, or wipe someone else out, doing 30 legally than there are places where I theoretically could do more than that but I'd open myself to a speeding charge. Speed limits are set with motor vehicles in mind - their general speed, their acceleration, their momentum, their weight, what the front end is made of, their braking capacity, and, not least, the competence of their drivers. They don't therefore necessarily fit the characteristics of bicycles and their riders.
Had a look online. It was the B182 heading into Austria from the Bremmer pass (not the authobahn!). Which I assume was the old pre authobahn route.
Came across this also:
viewtopic.php?t=9283
Refers to an even smaller road which I think is what we went up.
It’s an absolutely stunning valley and the engineering for the autobahn is impressive. As a ride it was incredible, that’s kind of the extreme end and never done/seen anything like it in the UK - perhaps coming southwards down the A6 at Shap might get close (only been up it sadly, man that was hard work!) and Glencoe was pretty cool but not the same level either. I wouldnt say it was particularly safe, but as I said with the brakes, there wasnt a huge amount to be done about the speed anyway. Being the old main road it was steep as befits the pass, but also wide, superb surface and gentle turns (sabre posts desricbr as twisty but I think cars and bikes have different scales!) so it was quite doable.
Tbh when cycling I’ve never considered the limits apply, all my attention is on positoning relative to traffic, and using bursts to fit in with cars etc. especially when I want to behave like one and take a slot in the traffic to do a junction/roundabout (and hence move out to hold that space - quid pro quo being I’ll be at the speed of the flow so not holding anyone up).
If on a pavement then obviously thats different - I’d always give way to pedestrians, but that takes us back to the old chestnut of how appalling UK cycling infra is and stupid shared space ideas are, which might be ok for kids (indeed mine are young and we’re on the pavement - but I teach them to give way and avoid peds) but is irrelevent for anyone actually trying to get anywhere using bike as a mode.
Having grown up cycling on a canal towpath, again, always gave way to peds, but a little brake application whilst coming up behind and locking the wheel for a small skid (as in small, just to generate the noise) 99% alerted people without excesive startle, and one could pass through then accelerate back to riding speed.
Their towpath gates were a pita (although a skid followed by an endo kicking the back round could expedite navigating them!) but clearly designed to stop all those knobbers on cheapo 2stroke motorbikes who like to rag up and down with zero consideration for anyone else (a plague in one of the places I live, with the standout exception of some Army lads who are incredibly polite and considerate) - I’ve just taken that pain as a price to pay for keeping them out. As a teenager with no other means to get about or between towns it never occurred they might have been to stop me!
