• Two Futilities for the price of one?

    From Spike@aero.spike@mail.com to uk.rec.cycling on Mon Dec 29 11:02:56 2025
    From Newsgroup: uk.rec.cycling


    London Eye architect shares images of Somerset tidal power station
    proposal, including new cycling race track

    The architect who designed the London Eye and Brighton's i360 observation
    tower has published a proposal for a 14-mile tidal power station in
    Somerset, the plans including a new cycling circuit.

    The -u11bn proposal suggests building a tidal power station from Minehead to Watchet, The Guardian (link is external) reporting it would also feature
    125 underwater turbines to "harness the power of the second-highest tidal
    range in the world", and a cycling track for riding and races.

    <https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-29-december-2025-317449#live-blog-item-72991>

    However, the *actual* tidal range at Minehead is about 9.6m during spring tides, and does *not* have rCLrCathe second-highest tidal range in the world" as is claimed.

    While Minehead's tidal range is significant, it does not rank in the
    worldrCOs top locations for tidal range. It is noteworthy within the Bristol Channel but falls well behind other prominent areas globally.

    Nothing like over-egging the cake, is there?

    And anyone who has followed the sea-drone war prosecuted by Ukraine will be aware that a couple of such drones sent in by a hostile actor will cripple
    the station but good, after the undersea cables from wind farms have been ripped up, of course.

    Note that a modest nuclear power station would cost less than this
    pipe-dream of a proposal, with the added benefit that it wonrCOt go off-line four times day.
    --
    Spike
    --- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From JNugent@jnugent73@mail.com to uk.rec.cycling on Mon Dec 29 17:44:15 2025
    From Newsgroup: uk.rec.cycling

    On 29/12/2025 11:02, Spike wrote:

    London Eye architect shares images of Somerset tidal power station
    proposal, including new cycling race track

    The architect who designed the London Eye and Brighton's i360 observation tower has published a proposal for a 14-mile tidal power station in
    Somerset, the plans including a new cycling circuit.

    The -u11bn proposal suggests building a tidal power station from Minehead to Watchet, The Guardian (link is external) reporting it would also feature
    125 underwater turbines to "harness the power of the second-highest tidal range in the world", and a cycling track for riding and races.

    <https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-29-december-2025-317449#live-blog-item-72991>

    However, the *actual* tidal range at Minehead is about 9.6m during spring tides, and does *not* have rCLrCathe second-highest tidal range in the world" as is claimed.

    While Minehead's tidal range is significant, it does not rank in the worldrCOs top locations for tidal range. It is noteworthy within the Bristol Channel but falls well behind other prominent areas globally.

    Nothing like over-egging the cake, is there?

    And anyone who has followed the sea-drone war prosecuted by Ukraine will be aware that a couple of such drones sent in by a hostile actor will cripple the station but good, after the undersea cables from wind farms have been ripped up, of course.

    Note that a modest nuclear power station would cost less than this
    pipe-dream of a proposal, with the added benefit that it wonrCOt go off-line four times day.

    What possible point can there be in including a cycle facility of any sort?

    It'll cost more (at that sort of scale, probably millions more) and
    cyclists won't pay a single penny to be allowed to use it.

    Remember the east London Thames Crossing by airborne gondola and how
    that was apparently going to be full of commuting cyclists (according to long-gone posters here)?

    Until they found out the amount of the fare, of course (the uk.r.c usual suspects here thought it would/should be free to cyclists).
    --
    This email has been checked for viruses by AVG antivirus software.
    www.avg.com
    --- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Spike@aero.spike@mail.com to uk.rec.cycling on Mon Dec 29 22:14:47 2025
    From Newsgroup: uk.rec.cycling

    JNugent <jnugent73@mail.com> wrote:
    On 29/12/2025 11:02, Spike wrote:

    London Eye architect shares images of Somerset tidal power station
    proposal, including new cycling race track

    The architect who designed the London Eye and Brighton's i360 observation
    tower has published a proposal for a 14-mile tidal power station in
    Somerset, the plans including a new cycling circuit.

    The -u11bn proposal suggests building a tidal power station from Minehead to >> Watchet, The Guardian (link is external) reporting it would also feature
    125 underwater turbines to "harness the power of the second-highest tidal
    range in the world", and a cycling track for riding and races.

    <https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-29-december-2025-317449#live-blog-item-72991>

    However, the *actual* tidal range at Minehead is about 9.6m during spring
    tides, and does *not* have rCLrCathe second-highest tidal range in the world"
    as is claimed.

    While Minehead's tidal range is significant, it does not rank in the
    worldrCOs top locations for tidal range. It is noteworthy within the Bristol >> Channel but falls well behind other prominent areas globally.

    Nothing like over-egging the cake, is there?

    And anyone who has followed the sea-drone war prosecuted by Ukraine will be >> aware that a couple of such drones sent in by a hostile actor will cripple >> the station but good, after the undersea cables from wind farms have been
    ripped up, of course.

    Note that a modest nuclear power station would cost less than this
    pipe-dream of a proposal, with the added benefit that it wonrCOt go off-line >> four times day.

    What possible point can there be in including a cycle facility of any sort?

    To rCOsellrCO its environmental credentials, of course, because unsurprisingly thererCOs no mention of how much concrete will be used in its construction, just like with offshore wind farms.

    It'll cost more (at that sort of scale, probably millions more) and
    cyclists won't pay a single penny to be allowed to use it.

    Remember the east London Thames Crossing by airborne gondola and how
    that was apparently going to be full of commuting cyclists (according to long-gone posters here)?

    Until they found out the amount of the fare, of course (the uk.r.c usual suspects here thought it would/should be free to cyclists).

    Why is it that cyclists expect everything to be free to them, even down to claiming that asking for water in a restaurant that should be free because
    that alone makes them a customer?
    --
    Spike
    --- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From JNugent@JNugent73@mail.com to uk.rec.cycling on Mon Dec 29 23:44:05 2025
    From Newsgroup: uk.rec.cycling

    On 29/12/2025 10:14 pm, Spike wrote:
    JNugent <jnugent73@mail.com> wrote:
    On 29/12/2025 11:02, Spike wrote:

    London Eye architect shares images of Somerset tidal power station
    proposal, including new cycling race track

    The architect who designed the London Eye and Brighton's i360 observation >>> tower has published a proposal for a 14-mile tidal power station in
    Somerset, the plans including a new cycling circuit.

    The -u11bn proposal suggests building a tidal power station from Minehead to
    Watchet, The Guardian (link is external) reporting it would also feature >>> 125 underwater turbines to "harness the power of the second-highest tidal >>> range in the world", and a cycling track for riding and races.

    <https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-29-december-2025-317449#live-blog-item-72991>

    However, the *actual* tidal range at Minehead is about 9.6m during spring >>> tides, and does *not* have rCLrCathe second-highest tidal range in the world"
    as is claimed.

    While Minehead's tidal range is significant, it does not rank in the
    worldrCOs top locations for tidal range. It is noteworthy within the Bristol
    Channel but falls well behind other prominent areas globally.

    Nothing like over-egging the cake, is there?

    And anyone who has followed the sea-drone war prosecuted by Ukraine will be >>> aware that a couple of such drones sent in by a hostile actor will cripple >>> the station but good, after the undersea cables from wind farms have been >>> ripped up, of course.

    Note that a modest nuclear power station would cost less than this
    pipe-dream of a proposal, with the added benefit that it wonrCOt go off-line
    four times day.

    What possible point can there be in including a cycle facility of any sort?

    To rCOsellrCO its environmental credentials, of course, because unsurprisingly
    thererCOs no mention of how much concrete will be used in its construction, just like with offshore wind farms.

    It'll cost more (at that sort of scale, probably millions more) and
    cyclists won't pay a single penny to be allowed to use it.

    Remember the east London Thames Crossing by airborne gondola and how
    that was apparently going to be full of commuting cyclists (according to
    long-gone posters here)?

    Until they found out the amount of the fare, of course (the uk.r.c usual
    suspects here thought it would/should be free to cyclists).

    Why is it that cyclists expect everything to be free to them, even down to claiming that asking for water in a restaurant that should be free because that alone makes them a customer?

    Ah... you too remember that thread? :-)

    Simon at his best.

    But he at least had the grace to go quiet when it was pointed out that a customer is someone who parts with money.
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