Newsletter - Cycling News | December
Sent: Thu, Sep 9th 2010, 17:56
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Welcome to the December edition of the electronic newsletter from Life Cycle UK, the cycle promotion charity. In this issue:
- Christmas
- Come on Google!
- Bikes on trains
- Can you ride tandem?
- Cock a hoop!
- Hourbike clocks in
- Free bikes for students
- Meet the team
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Christmas
Yes, Christmas is just a few weeks away. So take a trip to the Resource Centre of Life Cycle UK’s website. It’s a veritable Santa’s grotto. If there’s a cyclist in your life we have some great present ideas.
Cycle training vouchers. We train people of all ages and all abilities from complete beginners through to accomplished cyclists who wish to hone their skills further. A voucher will enable you to treat someone to a one-hour lesson – and maybe change their life!
Bike maintenance vouchers. Send a friend on one of our popular Saturday bike fixing courses. They’ll learn how a bike works, how to diagnose problems and how to carry out a range of essential adjustments and maintenance tasks.
Great books about cycling. We stock the excellent Haynes ride guides for Bristol & Bath, Birmingham & the Black Country, London, and Manchester. We also stock the Haynes Mountain Bike Book and the wonderful Haynes Bike Book, the definitive guide to cycle maintenance.
Cycling maps. We’ve got maps covering all of Bristol, many other UK towns and cities, plus honey-pot cycling locations such as the New Forest and the Forest of Dean. Most of them are free (you just pay postage) so maps make perfect credit crunch pressies!Bike stands. Well why not?! True, it’s a slightly unusual present and you'll need a gigantic sheet of gift wrap, but it could be just what your favourite cyclist is longing for.
And, this being the season of goodwill, please, please make a donation to Life Cycle. We’re a tiny charity and we depend on small grants and gifts. Even a small amount can make a big difference. Your generosity will enable us to help more people take up cycling, in particular those who are on low incomes or who have health problems or a disability.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Come on Google!
A global campaign is underway to persuade the planet’s favourite search engine to be more cycle-friendly. Many of us use the wonderful Google maps to find our way around. The maps show a street plan, or at the click of a button, an aerial photo to help you get a feel for the terrain.
Another click and you can summon up live traffic info, and car drivers can get detailed directions from A to B. For the USA and some other countries Google has also added a mass transit directions option which tells you how to reach your destination by bus, tram or train. Now cyclists are asking for a Bike There feature.
The organisers of the campaign say: “By implementing the “Public Transit' option, Google and the Google Maps team have shown themselves to be concerned and capable world citizens. A "Bike There" feature would be the ultimate statement in support of sustainable development, self-reliance, exercise and healthy living: that’s bicycle directions.”
Campaigners envisage the "Bike There" feature showing cycle lanes, bike paths and other infrastructure, and giving cyclists the option of seeing either the most direct route or the quietist and safest. The feature would make cycling easier and more pleasant for millions of people around the world. It would empower world citizens to adapt their lifestyles to face the challenges of global climate change and it would help Google fulfil its mission of "organising the world's information and making it universally accessible and useful."
More than 40,000 people have already signed the on-line petition. Add your voice to the campaign now!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bikes on trains
Give Google a nudge (see above) and then remind Gordon Brown about the potential of combining a bike trip with a train journey. The two forms of travel should be a marriage made in heaven, but getting a bike onto a train is often a hellish experience.
A new on-line petition says: "We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to require the train operators to provide an integrated system for the carriage of bicycles and ensure there is adequate capacity available."
It’s that simple. Sign it now!
Can you ride tandem?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Life Cycle's Two's Company project runs regular tandem rides for people who are blind or visually impaired. We're looking for volunteers to help us.
The idea for Two's Company came from local visually impaired people who told us that they have very limited opportunities to take exercise, keep fit, or enjoy the local countryside. Several people had cycled in their youth but had lost their vision in later life and had therefore had to give up cycling. They are keen to recapture the pleasures of riding on two wheels, experiencing the wind in their hair, the sounds and smells of the countryside, fresh air, and the thrill of moving quickly and quietly under their own power.
Life Cycle now owns six tandems and has a team of volunteer front riders. Some of the participants also own tandems, which gives us access to more than a dozen machines in total. Quite a fleet!
We run a ride every month from March to October and we cater for adults and for young people. We run rides suitable for all abilities from complete beginners through to experienced riders. A typical ride has up to seven tandems, each with a sighted person at the front and a visually impaired co-rider behind. The trips are enjoyable days out, and also opportunities for people to socialise and to make new friends.
We're currently looking for more volunteer front riders. You'll need to be a strong, experienced cyclist (you don't necessarily need tandem-riding experience, although that is useful), you must be very reliable and have a friendly nature. We will provide you with visual awarenss training and other support. Please contact us for more information.
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Cock a Hoop!
The Cyclehoop is a simple, but incredibly useful device that turns almost any upright pole into an instant bike stand. That means roadsigns, lampposts, bollards, even bus stops and traffic lights are potential parking places for up to two bicycles.
As the name suggests, the device is a simple hoop which gets bolted on to existing posts. It means no additional clutter and there’s no need to dig up the pavement. The manufacturers see the Cyclehoop as quick, easy and cost-effective way of providing secure parking places for thousands of bicycles
The Cyclehoop is the brainchild of 27-year-old inventor Tony Lau. Here at Life Cycle we think it’s a great idea. In a city like Bristol – supposedly a hotbed of cycling excellence – the addition of a few thousand hoops could reduce bike theft and help make cycle use easier and more convenient. Many people already lock their bikes to traffic signs – but are gobsmacked to discover that thieves have simply lifted their bike and its lock up and over the top of the pole. The Cyclehoop would prevent this happening. We understand that the London boroughs of Islington and Southwark are already installing Cyclehoops.
We might also remind bike users at this point that Life Cycle has hundreds of Sheffield stands to give away. Organisations in Bristol, Bath, Gloucestershire, or Somerset can get two of these simple, sturdy and highly effective forms of cycle parking free of charge through our Take a Stand project.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Hourbike clocks in
In previous editions of Cycling News we’ve reported on the development of the Hourbike scheme. Modelled on the successful Velib service in Paris, Hourbike will offer the people of Bristol low cost bike hire.
Hourbike was formally launched, in low-key kind of way, at the end of October, when 10 of the custom-built bikes and their special docking pods were unveiled at the University of the West of England and at Bristol Parkway station.
Bikes are released by inserting an Hourbike membership card and keying in a PIN. The bike is then yours to use – and the first half-hour of riding is free of charge.
Hourbike director Tim Caswell said: "For the first time, fully automated, 24/7 bike hire is coming to Bristol. The pilot scheme will launch more widely in other areas of Bristol next month but the test sites at Parkway and UWE will help us decide how we develop the service. The plan is to have nine hubs and 60 bikes up and running initially and for the scheme to grow from there according to demand."
Read the full story from the Bristol Evening Post or get the BBC’s take on things, including a video showing the bikes in action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Free bikes for students
UWE students get cheap bike hire (see above) but at the University of New England in Wisconsin, USA they’ve gone a whole lot further and are handing out free bikes to students. The university has committed $50,000 to the programme and which is already achieving the desired effect. Only 25 percent of freshers brought cars with them this year, officials said, compared with 75 percent the previous year.
“I don’t have to fill it with gas, and it doesn’t hurt the environment,” said student Kaitlyn Birwell, 18. “With a car, you need a parking permit, gas, and it breaks down. I’m a college student and don’t have the money for that.”
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Meet the team
Life Cycle UK’s mission is to help more people take up cycling and we do this through a range of practical services such as cycle training, teaching bike maintenance, providing maps and information, and giving away free cycle parking. We also run various special projects such as tandem rides for blind and visually impaired people, and bike activities for disadvantaged youngsters.
Name: Josh Katz
Role: BikeBack Co-ordinator
Tell us a little about yourself and what you do: I was born in Bristol and grew up here. I have been interested in bikes and riding since I can remember. The search for an adrenalin buzz took me to Chamonix in the French alps where I spent about six years mountain biking, snowboarding and, towards the end of my time there, paragliding.
Now, I'm the bicycle recycling co-ordinator for Life Cycle. I collect old bikes, refurbish them and give them to people in Bristol who are in need of financial or social support.
Best thing about working for Life Cycle: The ability to work hands on in the cycle industry, with the satisfaction of doing something positive for the local community.
Do you do much cycling? I use a bike as transport and therefore cycle most days, I am also into mountain biking and take to the trails as often as possible, at the moment just once or twice a week.
What bike(s) do you own? My commuting bike is an old Specialized Stumpjumper, fully rigid, with slick tyres and set up as a single speed, my mountain bikes are a Specialized SX Trail Two for high speed descents, and a DMR Trailstar for everything else.
Your favourite cycle journey? The one I have just started/finished is always the best.
Josh's top cycling tips. Knowing your limits is important. Keep cycling fun and safe by not taking on more then you can handle. Learning the basic skills to keep your bike on the road can save you a fortune in time and money.
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Everyclick
Here's a way to support Life Cycle at no cost to yourself! Simply use the Everyclick search engine. Every time you search, a tiny donation is made to Life Cycle UK. It takes a few seconds to register and then away you go! Surf the net, check your horoscope, update your Facebook profile, do a spot of shopping… and you’ll see the donations clock up remarkably quickly.
- Sent
- Thu, Sep 9th 2010, 17:56