L
I've been posting responses here for a little while, but before asking
my question, I thought I'd introduce myself properly. A few bullet
points:
* did a lot of cycling as a child; I now find it hard to believe that
aged 12 I cycled from Birmingham to Bournemouth with a friend of the
same age, staying in youth hostels; the following year did a big loop
through north and mid Wales; and all on a 3 spd SA;
* hardly cycled in my 20s;
* in my 30s bought something dangerously close to a BSO, did some
evening rides on Wimbledon Common/Richmond Park/Thames footpath;
* in my 40s moved to a village 600' up in the Cotswolds; the near-BSO
got me up 1 in 6 hills and stopped at the bottom going down, so it
can't have been too bad; it was eventually stolen by the local bike
thief (can't imagine he got much for it);
* near-BSO replaced by a 2nd hand early 90s Raleigh MTB/hybrid, a
lucky purchase from LBS - lucky because I was still pretty uninformed
at the time, and it suits me rather well (though I'm starting to think
about upgrading);
* I now commute by bike at least twice a week, 15 mile round trip, but
includes 650 feet of ascent in a couple of miles, so keeps me pretty
fit; have done my longer commute for the other 3 days of the week a
few times (30 mile round trip/1,000' of ascent)
* Occasionally hire MTBs for a bit of off road fun and also tandems,
but this isn't a major part of my cycling.
Ambitions
* To commute by bike 5 days a week - the longer route is on a rural
rat run, unpleasant when I'm not able to avoid rush hour, can't
imagine doing it in the dark in winter; most drivers round here are OK
though;
* To do some more cycle touring (probably somewhere with more reliable
weather than the UK).
* To do some centuries; was originally planning to start with
kilometres, but Danny's posting about Exmouth Exodus got me
interested, so I'm planning to do that this weekend (but may wimp out
if the weather doesn't improve a bit). I've also been fascinated by
Simon's 7 stanes reports, though I don't think I'm up to that.
Frustrations
* The way public policy sees cycling as a "good thing" - less CO2,
reduces congestion, reduces pollution, health benefits - yet we're
treated as outcasts. I think the laws protecting us are generally OK
(they could of course be improved) but 99.9% unenforced. The
injustices this leads to make me seethe.
* Public money being spent on cycle farcilities. Why do they do that?
Having said that, I like some of the ones based on old railway lines.
I'm happy to trade slowing down for dog walkers in exchange for not
worrying about whether the vehicle I can hear coming up behind me is
the one that's going to come that bit too close.
-----------------------------------------------------
My question:
I don't at present belong to any cycling organisation, and am
wondering whether I should. My two main reasons for joining would be:
1) to contribute to campaigns that defend the sort of road cycling I
do eg recent campaigns against changes to the highway code;
2) to support fellow cyclists where legal issues arise eg the Daniel
Cadden case; I'd like to support these cases because of the policy
issues they raise, and I also like the idea that some support is there
for me in the unlikely event that I need it.
I suppose I should have 3rd party liability insurance, but not having
it doesn't particularly bother me.
I know a little about the CTC but don't feel any afinity with them. I
know I can give money to the Cyclists' Defence Fund and may well do
so. Some local cycle campaigns look good, but there isn't one that
covers my area.
So, what - if anything - do other people belong to and why (or why
not)?
Rob
my question, I thought I'd introduce myself properly. A few bullet
points:
* did a lot of cycling as a child; I now find it hard to believe that
aged 12 I cycled from Birmingham to Bournemouth with a friend of the
same age, staying in youth hostels; the following year did a big loop
through north and mid Wales; and all on a 3 spd SA;
* hardly cycled in my 20s;
* in my 30s bought something dangerously close to a BSO, did some
evening rides on Wimbledon Common/Richmond Park/Thames footpath;
* in my 40s moved to a village 600' up in the Cotswolds; the near-BSO
got me up 1 in 6 hills and stopped at the bottom going down, so it
can't have been too bad; it was eventually stolen by the local bike
thief (can't imagine he got much for it);
* near-BSO replaced by a 2nd hand early 90s Raleigh MTB/hybrid, a
lucky purchase from LBS - lucky because I was still pretty uninformed
at the time, and it suits me rather well (though I'm starting to think
about upgrading);
* I now commute by bike at least twice a week, 15 mile round trip, but
includes 650 feet of ascent in a couple of miles, so keeps me pretty
fit; have done my longer commute for the other 3 days of the week a
few times (30 mile round trip/1,000' of ascent)
* Occasionally hire MTBs for a bit of off road fun and also tandems,
but this isn't a major part of my cycling.
Ambitions
* To commute by bike 5 days a week - the longer route is on a rural
rat run, unpleasant when I'm not able to avoid rush hour, can't
imagine doing it in the dark in winter; most drivers round here are OK
though;
* To do some more cycle touring (probably somewhere with more reliable
weather than the UK).
* To do some centuries; was originally planning to start with
kilometres, but Danny's posting about Exmouth Exodus got me
interested, so I'm planning to do that this weekend (but may wimp out
if the weather doesn't improve a bit). I've also been fascinated by
Simon's 7 stanes reports, though I don't think I'm up to that.
Frustrations
* The way public policy sees cycling as a "good thing" - less CO2,
reduces congestion, reduces pollution, health benefits - yet we're
treated as outcasts. I think the laws protecting us are generally OK
(they could of course be improved) but 99.9% unenforced. The
injustices this leads to make me seethe.
* Public money being spent on cycle farcilities. Why do they do that?
Having said that, I like some of the ones based on old railway lines.
I'm happy to trade slowing down for dog walkers in exchange for not
worrying about whether the vehicle I can hear coming up behind me is
the one that's going to come that bit too close.
-----------------------------------------------------
My question:
I don't at present belong to any cycling organisation, and am
wondering whether I should. My two main reasons for joining would be:
1) to contribute to campaigns that defend the sort of road cycling I
do eg recent campaigns against changes to the highway code;
2) to support fellow cyclists where legal issues arise eg the Daniel
Cadden case; I'd like to support these cases because of the policy
issues they raise, and I also like the idea that some support is there
for me in the unlikely event that I need it.
I suppose I should have 3rd party liability insurance, but not having
it doesn't particularly bother me.
I know a little about the CTC but don't feel any afinity with them. I
know I can give money to the Cyclists' Defence Fund and may well do
so. Some local cycle campaigns look good, but there isn't one that
covers my area.
So, what - if anything - do other people belong to and why (or why
not)?
Rob
