Drive A Short Distance So You Can Run A Short Distance...

Every week (OK missed a few) over the past month and a bit, I've been running a 5km timed run, run (no pun intended) by Parkrun. Did one today.

The events take part in pleasant woodlands every Saturday across the UK. It's free, your timings are recorded and personal bests shown. When you've run 50 of them (12 months if you run every week), you get a t-shirt with "50" printed on the back and another when you've run 100, with "100" printed on the back of it.

I came across it one Saturday by accident when out on a morning ride to the War Memorial park. Nice little find. You feel you've done something constructive on a Saturday morning and it's good to be around the health and fitness oriented. All in, it takes less than 2 hours to get there, run, queue for your timings and get back.

So, what has this to do with cycling? Well, I've noticed how the number of people who drive to get there heavily outnumber the cyclists who cycle to get there, who can be counted on two hands at most out of over 300 runners...

The nearest car park is too small for all the cars and excess vehicles have to park on the grass. Today, there were no grass parkers because the organisers had asked people not to park on the grass as, there's been lots of rain and the grass would become a quagmire if everybody parked on it.

Something wrong there? Well, not necessarily; I mean, for all I know, the car drivers may have driven over 10 miles or so, therefore using the car is justified in my book, it's not a triathlon or iron man afterall. Then again, there might be nearer events to them as there are at least 6 of the same about 20 miles away. I just suspect that most of them will have driven in from around 5 miles away because most of the residential areas in my town are that distance at most away from where this event is held.

So, drive 7km or whatever 5 miles is, so that you can run 5 km...It has been fair weather, so even less of an excuse. All the drivers drove there probably out of habit...

Well, in fairness, over ten years ago, I might have been one of them. Of course, I only rediscovered cycling in 2008. Moreover, many are completely unaware of how cheap, fast, efficient and enjoyable cycling is for short distances in good weather. Just like I was. But the cycling lobby only seems to promote the benefits of cycling with regard to environmentalism and fitness. Which are perfectly valid, but don't seem to be winning over the public. The pushbike's forte of fast, efficient, cheap transport over short distances all too often seems to be overlooked or ignored...

If we want to reduce dependency on the car, this type of journey might be a good place to start - use the bike for distances and in weather conditions where the car offers no advantage.

Perhaps we could try more to promote it thus. I'm attempting to here. Also everyone I meet - hope I'm not becoming too dull/irritating/bee in my bonnet in the process...

Also save money and wear and tear on the car...;-)

The right hand side of the car park...full up...

The left hand side of the car park...full up...

Recognise that silver bike there? That's what they should all ride - not the same bike, but the same model ;-)

The Appeal Of Cycling - Part 1 - Transport

Cycling, or more specifically, town cycling, isn't the most important thing in my life, but it's right up there.

I've identified 4 areas as to why this is:

1) Transport/utility
2) Hardware
3) Doing it
4) Image/Lifestyle

Except for transport, these aren't in any order of importance. I suppose transport could be classed as more important than the others which could be considered as just nice to have for quality of life.

Anyway, using a pushbike for transport, I find I'm able to get about really quickly, efficiently, cheaply and comfortably for short journeys in fair weather. It's an extension of my legs. For most local journeys, it really is a case of just hopping on, pedaling for 20 minutes or less and you're there.

I think this is the pushbike's forte, and is reflected in the cycling cultures of Holland and Denmark.

In the past, when I haven't had my bike for whatever reason, I find out how expensive motor vehicles can be - either buses or especially by car (as I well remember when I commuted by car, no other way was feasible and our government seemed to be increasing the price of petrol every week). Each time petrol went up by a penny, I had £5 less disposable income...

And when I've had to walk, there's plenty of incentive to get back on the bike, I can assure you. Journeys which used to be quick and easy become slow and arduous, especially if you have to carry groceries, so I avoid it if I can.

Obviously a lot faster than walking, cycling may in many cases be faster than cars, because there's no such thing (yet!) as congestion or roadworks, holding you up and you can ride in areas closed to vehicular traffic. You also don't have to worry about where to park as well as maneuvering out of tight areas like parking spaces. And in my town, parking's pretty expensive too.

I think if more people had the same experience with cycling as transport as I do, its popularity would soar.

See what I could do to make it happen...I know, I could write a blog...

Cycling "Superhighways"

Recently I had to make the journey in London from Waterloo railway station to Chrystal Palace, I decided to cycle the way instead of taking my bike on public transport. According to TFL's (Transport For London) journey planner, the trip should have taken less time than if I'd used the train.

So, I did. It took a lot longer. But that isn't the point of this post. See, I had the dubious experience of using one of the "Cycling Superhighways" in the capital...

Not totally sure of what I was expecting, think it was a segregated stretch of shared footpath, about 3-4 metres wide, the same as in my hometown, only a lot longer, several miles, instead of several hundred yards at most. I find these really convenient to use and feel safe using them. I'd like to see more of them, and to it's credit, the local government is building more and more. All to the good. One thing that my town can boast of is its council, which seems to do what it's supposed to do efficiently and effectively.

Like this where I live (not too much to expect as there's lots of green parks and trees bits of London, it's not all concrete):

What I saw of the "superhighway" was simply a part of road which couldn't have been more than 1-1.25m wide, next to all the other traffic, painted blue, sometimes with a number painted on it (the number of the "superhighway" lane). And that was it. Sometimes it would merge with the bus lane. Not the best mix - one of the largest vehicles side by side with one of the smallest I would have thought...

See that blue box on the right? That means the far right metre wide part of the road is a cycling superhighway just for bikes well, except for the parts which merge with the bus lane...No, that's not me riding...
Photo courtesy of Felix O/Wikimedia Commons.

Hardly a cycling "superhighway" is it? And to officially label it such is to invite ridicule and criticism...

Having asked others, the "superhighways" in other parts of the capital are all pretty much the same.

Now, being the level headed, look-at-both-sides-of-the-argument-before-jumping-to-conclusions-chap that I am, for all I know (haven't bothered to research admittedly, may get round to it), the cycling "superhighway" that I saw may be temporary and subject to continuous improvement, and London may, in the not too distant future get the type of cycling friendly infrastructure similar to the first picture, that a modern city should have. These things take time. London is over a thousand years old with many narrow streets that were adequate for the time at which they were built. So quite a task as I'm sure you'll understand. I've worked in a couple of places that gave me an idea of the planning and consultation needed for civil engineering projects, so as long as what I saw wasn't the finalised version, I'll hold fire...

Time will tell...