VictoriaN

Hi!

There are a couple of us looking to cycle from Oxford to Harwell tomorrow. Last year we took a route that ran along the Thames Pathway, past Radley, past a water treatment works somewhere in Abingdon, briefly through Milton Park, then past the Milton Interchange roundabout and onwards towards Harwell.

There are a couple of hairy bits on the Oxford leg of the journey (especially for a road bike!), so I was wondering if there are any good routes for getting to Abingdon or Didcot and onwards.

Many thanks!

Victoria

I am sorry to hear that you were injured by the actions of a bad dog owner, rather than a bad dog (who should have been under control in an area in close proximity to a cycle path). I imagine that there is little you can do when any animal jumps out at random from a blind spot – much like a child running out from behind a car. All you can do, I would guess, is be extra vigilant in areas where dogs off the leash are more likely to be about – perhaps looking for people holding empty leads, rather than the more easily hidden dogs themselves.

If you are chased/attacked by a dog however, the following website offers some useful advice:

http://bicycling.about.com/od/howtoride/tp/dogs_and_bikes.htm

It is nice to see it recommends attacking the dog only as a last resort, if you are in danger of being bitten.