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Mission: on your bike!
Sarah Warden16/12/2005
We like to set our reporters a challenge so we sent
Sarah Warden to learn how to ride a bike - and
wear the regulation cycling gear - in time for winter rush
hours.
NOT only is cycling becoming so cool even politicians want to do
it, but it's also the best way to save the planet - it seems
everyone is trying to get us on our bikes.
But like thousands of others, I feel far too vulnerable and exposed
on a bike to consider taking on any traffic at all, let alone rush
hour drivers.
As a child I whisked around the neighbourhood on a bike without
thinking about it, but now I think it's perfectly normal to panic
and wobble if a lorry passes within a metre of me, I don't trust
drivers one iota and I prefer to leave cycling to the occasional
scoot round a woodland trail when on holiday.
So it was with some trepidation that I approached Manchester
Velodrome for an adult cycling lesson which would, apparently, give
me the confidence to brave the traffic.
The Bike Right project gets all sorts of people cycling for all
sorts of reasons.
It runs lessons for school children, health rides in parks for
adults wanting to get fit and adults who want to start cycling to
work can even get someone to plan and ride their route with them
until they feel confident doing it.
Project manager Chris Taylor started by kitting me out with a bike
and (optional) helmet and took me through some basic manoeuvres in
a quiet corner of the car park.
I felt decidedly wobbly, especially when I was asked to remove one
hand from the handlebars.
I wondered how on earth I had thought something with only two
wheels could ever feel safe.
But Chris seemed untroubled by my wiggly riding line and was full
of praise for my skills with the pedals, as he pushed me to
practice the scarier skills, like looking backwards over my
shoulder, until I had begun to feel slightly less
uncomfortable.
From there it was out into a quiet road to practice junctions and
turning - all very similar to driving really, which helped to build
my confidence a bit.
Chris was also keen to remind me that as a cyclist I had a right to
be on the roads and he spelt out the importance of riding
confidently to ensure drivers respect me.
The thought was a bit frightening at first, but soon I began to
develop a bit of attitude, which is clearly what separates the
successful cyclist from the novice - a sense of certainty that you
deserve your space on the road.
And then we were freestyling it around the streets.
Chris stayed close to me all the way, shouting instructions, which
made me feel amazingly confident on the smaller roads.
I was a bit unsure when he proposed taking on some bigger
junctions, but I wanted to face my fears while accompanied by an
expert, so we gave Ashton Old Road a go, and did traffic lights
with three lanes of traffic, which was made much easier by having
someone explain how to behave.
He was so encouraging that I felt a sense of confinement when I was
in my car on the way back to the office.
I have tasted the freedom of the roads, and I want more!
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