"Some impressions of February's critical mass ride: video and short report. I didn't stay so long, so additions to what happened past the Grenville St roundabout would be good. http://www.youtube.com/user/dromeLND

Anyway, ere gopes: I think corking went reasonably well this time, there was some toing and froing about the route, but it seemed to me that whenwe were divided it was more about the route and people trying to be leaders, rather than different attitudes traffic lights/pedestrian crosings or lack of corking which caused split masses at the last few rides I came to (I don't come every month). We went from Waterloo towards Bloomsbury, down New Oxford Street, stopping outside the shut off Tottenham Ct Road, down Oxford st for a little bit, turning back on ourselves through the side streets, cutting back to the upper part of Tottenham Ct Road. Down Euston Rd, into Regents Park, cycling around in the park, splitting up, getting the group back together down to Camden Town. Blocking a crossing, lifting bikes and ringing bells (some indie kid called us "weirdos" and chucked a plastic bottle...what a fashion victim). then down towards St Pancras station, down Judd Street and round and round the roundabout at Grenville Street.

Again, more info what happened after that has to come from somebody else..."

Ta

Drome

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"I quit out early on Friday, it seemed like there was a lot of aggression and it was just gonna be like that. Like it would be too much road blocking, too many bike lift stunts and posing for tourist photos.

In the end it seemed like it was a good mass, with the circling of regents park and that.

I'm not opposed to just stopping some places while the route is worked out, but I can't see the point of sitting in a traffic jam for no reason. It's just notfun.

At the time I quit - the group where blocking outside Tottenham Court Road station. Because of the block all the other cyclists where stuck behind buses in the traffic jam behind, lots of groups getting into arguments and getting lost behind.

It always seems that the best masses are mid-winter, freezing cold and raining and then we actually go somewhere! Then as soon as it gets warmer there are all these people who seem to think that the point is to deliberately wind up the cab drivers and block off junctions - not to cork - but just to sit there and piss people off. Troll basically.That's the chat I heard "let's wind up the taxi drivers"!

Nine times out of ten if you politely explain that the hold up is just a few minutes, it's only once a month, tell them our reasons and say that there are much worse hold ups like the motorbike protests...well, they smile and say "okay, whatever". Then we can just carry on having fun and celebrating and representing cyclists.

I mean, it's a big city and there's no reason to just go into tourist central. I realise that it is listed in TimeOut as a good free bike tour, but still...going into the West End is miserable. We just become part of the traffic jam. Sure, now and then hit it up, but ugh!

I mean, a little bit of Chelsea? Brixton? Battersea? Elephant? Islington? Notting Hill? Go somewhere unusual and the people are like, "gaw, what's that?" And it's cool and you just have fun cycling instead of trying to piss people off.

As long as we are celebrating and processing it's totally legal. If we vary things up then we aren't going to get any heat. But if this grim, hateful bullshit carries on then we're going to get grief with the pigs again and all the gentle people and families will just keep on walking away!"

Chas

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"I quit out at Tottenham Court Road, swearing etc. It just seemed such a mess, the West End is impossible to get through and the only reason to do it is to piss people off.

Because of the group waiting at Tottenham Court road, all the other people where stuck behind busses and arguing with taxi drivers, etc.

I know that TimeOut advertises Critical Mass as a free cycling tour but we don't have to go to the West End every time! London is a big city and there are so many exciting options where people would be interested to see us. Whether it be Brixton or Elephant or Chelsea or Battersea or Notting Hill or Islington or Dalston or wherever. It doesn't take that long and we can have a jolly cycle celebration instead of a chauvinist sausage party blocking off picadilly circus whilst demonstration our shouting and bicycle lifting skills.

I like to have a nice cycle, yeah we gotta represent and cork it. But I don't get the people who set out to have beef with the other folk on the road. Just tell them sweetly that they have to wait five minutes, that the Law Lords have said it is legal and there are worse things in life. 9/10 times - if you tell a taxi driver that you are representing for cylists and having fun and that it's only going to be a minute - they're cool! I like to start complaining about TFL with them and on more than one occasion the taxi driver really got into the whingefest about BoJo et. al. (And yeah if they're a stress cadet - be like a lion).

But, it seemed that on Friday from the get-go the Aggromen where representing and making discussions about pissing off taxi drivers and blocking junctions (not corking) but stopping and blocking junctions just for fun. Why? What's the point? Why be a cock just for fun? Do they want us to get heat from the pigs again? Do they have to live and cycle in London - because we have to deal with these drivers and walkers 30 days a month?!

I can't deal with that, and I know a lot of other people can't either. It's supposed to be a fun cycle.

Anyway, apologies, for shouting and ranting and it seems like you had a great time on Feb's ride. Going round Regents park, having fun. Great!

I know it's not about leaders, but how do you stop a strong minded blow in from pushing to the front with revolutionary ideal, yon rebel without a cause. Because if it's a protest then we need a cause, not just being Arsehole Trolls.

grumble. grumble, etc."

Hicks

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"If some people on the ride fancy doing a bit of peaceful protesting or holding their bikes aloft to celebrate cycle culture then personally I think that's a good thing. Critical mass has never been a purely sedate sightseeing ride anyway. There's plenty of organised 'fun cycle' rides for those who prefer that type of scenario. If anything I'd say the mass is actually a lot less confrontational than it once was.

Cab drivers frequently protest with go-slow convoys or road blockages whenever they've got a grievance, so they haven't really got any right to get annoyed. The fact is though that any kind of protest/demonstration/parade or whatever in a built up area is always likely to inconvenience or piss off somebody. That doesn't mean people shouldn't ever protest."

unknown_cyclist

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