Spotting on the Sandbach to Chester Railroad by wyleu

As the weather begins to improve to the point where certain individuals consider the possibilities of a cycling holiday there is an increased likelyhood of my lone bike being joined by others. It would be easy to get territorial about the one and only spot on most Arriva trains but that really doesn't help proceedings and it's much easier to try to help the process when it occurs.

Arriva, makes allowance for bikes but it's rather a strange effort. A small corridor like room adjacent to the corridor, next to the train door, is what they've given which is a considerable volume to set aside but is only really large enough for one bike, and whilst it looks like a second bike could fit it really can't because of the pedals and gears.

Since, in my case the train runs back and forward between Chester & Crewe there are none of the complications of getting bikes on and off at intervening stations which would really confuse the whole issue, and I've enough experience to get my bike in first,I was already comfortable sat in a seat where I can keep an eye on the whole area. ONe can't be too careful.

Once you do get a second bike there are two solutions. The first of these is a touch of local knowledge. Since the train has the same door opening for both Chester & Crewe, the space near the other door is available and that is probably the most sensible solution. The other solution is to try and jam a second bike into the space available. 

In regards to the first solution, The local staff aren't concerned althou' the occasional British Transport Police with their overpowering desire to be seen to do something, anything, to fill the tedium of their days will probably say something. And this is what happened this morning.

The BTP muttered something about safety and mentioned the fire risk to the short wearing individual with the large rucksack who had stationed himself adjacent to his bike. Now quite what there is on a bike that could increase the fire risk is difficult to identify and if the fumes were so thick at this location as to obscure the view the odds are you'd probably use the three other ways out, but such logic obvious hasn't featured in our fine, upstanding BTP's risk assessment of the situation and anyway theres some telling people what to do available and that is bread & butter to our stout yeoman.

Firstly our tourist, had to manouver the bike round to get it in such an orientation that it could slide into the storage area. This isn't normally very easy to do but when the person doing it has a rucksack on and there is a spare policewoman in the volume as well someone is going to have to move. Obviously BTP felt she shouldn't have to actually help this process at all, seeing herself in a more managerial role, but its was becoming apparent that if any progress was to be made someone would have to relinquish the space, so reluctantly she stepped back into the the train compartment to allow the tourist to perfrom the manouver. Where upon the automatic door shut on her. She instinctively, with what must have been days of training, jumped forwards into the tourist and baching her leg on the back gear of the bike.

She swore.

The door opened, she stepped back through it giving him space, he put his back wheel into the compartment to line it up, at which point the door closed again onto the bike.just as he was moving it forward catching the door with the pedals. Both of them went for the door switch at the same time, and so the ballet continued for some minutes. If fact by now the train was beginning to approaching Chester.

And light dawned. 

'Why don't you put it next to the door?' suggested the BTP. Now given it had originally come from there it was with great resistance that the tourist managed to say 'That's a good idea' without so much as a trace of an ironic note in his voice. So they once more manouvered round each other, the bike, the door and the corridor till finally it was in the original place it had come from.

Just in time to arrive at Chester station.