Any other tip for a train/coker tour in the UK? Which part would be particulary nice to visit on one wheel in June? I walked The Pembrokeshire Coast Path in 1997 and remember I liked Wales and the Welsh ...
joemarshall wrote:> *Wales is nice if you're not English. If you're English everyone hates> you in a lot of places, it isn't very friendly at all.> *
This surely needs some defence. I'm English (effectively, for these purposes) and I've had no trouble or animmosity whatsoever. I'm at uni in Wales (Sweet home Aberystwyth) and really quite like the odd bit of Welshness. Certainly being in Wales doesn't affect the riding, which is rather fantastic. There are plenty of singletrack centers. Phil will now almost jump in his car at the mere muttering of 'Nant-yn-Arian', and then there's Coed-y-Brenin, not to mention Snowdon, plus whatever delights there are in South Wales that I'm oblivious to...
Though I've not seen Scottish mountains for far too long, I'm heading steadily in the direction of thinking Wales to be one of the most beautiful places ever. Come to Wales, it's *the* place to Muni
I'd pretty much concur with Sam (redwelly) - on much of what he says regarding Wales; the riding is fantastic, the scenery may not be the very top Britain has to offer - Scottish Highlands and Islands comes top (not just geographically) - but Snowdonia a close joint second with Cumbria. and less remote to the majority of the UK population.
Some elements of the Welsh people can be a bit antagonistic towards the English, particularly when they are clashing at Twickenham or the Millenium Stadium, but this is also true of any of the subjugated celtic nations; there is a collective national memory and resentment towards the more powerful partner that goes back over 1000 years. Britain's peoples are as varied as it's landscapes; to borrow a phrase from another longstanding mutual dis-respect, "vive la diference!".
London - this is *the* place to coker, no contest, assuming you're> happy with riding with traffic. Unicycling is a great way to see the> sights.
Hmmm, if you like riding in heavy traffic and choking on the fumes, then I guess London is as okay as any other city. Head for the hills.
Back on-thread:
There shouldn't be any problems with taking your Coker onto trains, so long as it isn't a crowded commuter train during rush-hour. Long distance coaches may be another option to consider, but I've never tried it myself - anyone else any experience here ?
Enjoy your trip goldenchicken - there are Coker riders in most parts of the UK who would be more than happy to meet up and ride with you. We are a friendly bunch, particularly the English ;)
By the way redwelly - great avatar, "top" unicyclist in Wales !!
Chris
-- munidobs - Level - whatever - who gives a ****
"We have a firm commitment to Nato; we are a part of Nato. We have a firm commitment to Europe. We are part of Europe." George Dubya ------------------------------------------------------------------------ munidobs's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/8790 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/39005
munidobs wrote:> Long distance coaches may be another option to consider, but I've> never tried it myself - anyone else any experience here ?> [/B]
I've used National Express 2 or 3 times with a uni.
Like Joe says with trains, don't ring up and ask anyone if it's OK; I would think they'd either say 'no' or refer it to a supervisor.
The unis I've taken on are a 24x3 and a 29-er (on seperate occasions), and I've always assumed that refusal was possible, so I take the approach of separating the wheel from the frame, and storing the frame/seat in my rucksack.
The reasoning being that I don't see how anyone could have a problem with putting a wheel on the coach.
I also take off the pedals to make it less likely to get damaged or caught on other peoples luggage.
Thing to be aware of with National Express is that the drivers love to get all your stuff stored, then leave the boots gaping open and wander off. So you either need to get a seat on the side where you can keep an eye on things, or stay off the coach till the last minute to keep an eye on things.
I'd feel fairly confident that a 24/26/29" wheel will be totally fine; not sure about a Coker though.
-- onewheeldave - Semi Skilled Unicyclist
"He's also been known to indulge in a spot of flame juggling - but it's the Muni that really fires him up."
redwelly wrote:> *There are plenty of singletrack centers. Phil will now almost jump in> his car at the mere muttering of 'Nant-yn-Arian', and then there's> Coed-y-Brenin, not to mention Snowdon, plus whatever delights there> are in South Wales that I'm oblivious to...*
<jumps in car> Sorry, what were we talking about?
Wales contains some excellent riding in the form of the singletrack centres. There's nothing like riding trails made just for the purpose, especially when they're in fantastic locations such as Nant-y-Arian.
In the south Afan has four excellent trails and Cwmcarn has one. Cwmcarn is very handy for nipping across the border from civilization, erm, England.
The problem with Wales is that it takes blummin' ages to get anywhere. Admittedly half of this is probably the English "Wales is just that little blob tacked on the side, it's not very big" stereotype, but the rest is that the roads are small and windy and the trains generally take the very-extended-scenic-route. Enjoyable but not if you're in a hurry.
I've taken my coker on trains, its OK apart from in the rush hour in cities when its not OK. On any train with space for bikes I put the coker there. If there is no dedicated bike space I try and keep it as out of the way as I can. Nowadays I carry a small cable lock with me wrapped around the seatpost so I can chain the uni up to a rail or a bike rack while I go and do stuff like buying tickets / food / touristy sight seeing.
