It’s the perfect time to go with the flow

Published on Tuesday 27 December 2011 14:17

There are multiple savings to be made when you take to two wheels, writes Ben White

MY BICYCLE is a time machine. By that I mean it gets me to work in ten minutes rather than the 25 minutes it takes by bus. However, a bike is more than just a thing that saves time. It can help you achieve and maintain a decent level of fitness, save on travel costs and you can even spend your holiday on it. Plus, cycling is better for the environment than driving.

According to the Scottish Government, about 1 per cent of all journeys in Scotland are currently made by bike. But the government aims to increase that to 10 per cent of all journeys in Scotland by 2020. The aim is a noble one if not realistic, especially since the government announced it is considering cutting its cycling budget next year. Ian Maxwell, of cycling campaign group Spokes, says that rather than slashing the budget, the government “needs to spend more or the target is unreachable”.

Whether the government reaches that target or not, it has invested about £40 million since 2008 on improving cycling facilities around Scotland. These facilities include the National Cycle Network (NCN), which consists of 12,490 miles in the UK, 1,926 miles of which are in Scotland. The NCN provides short safe routes, many of which are suitable for all age groups, that can be used for leisure rides and commuting, as well as long-distance routes for more serious cyclists. The NCN is developed with funding from the government via cycling charity Sustrans. For printable maps of the whole network in Scotland, see www.sustrans.org.uk/sustrans-near-you/scotland.

For those with a bit more drive than the average spinner, road cycle clubs offer a great way to meet people while you pedal your passion. It’s also a lot easier to cycle 50 to 80 miles in a group. Riders take turns doing the hard work at the front, taking on the headwind, while the others conserve their energy by cycling in the leaders’ slipstream. There are many road clubs in Scotland, most of which welcome new members of all levels. See scotlandinter.net/cycling.htm for a list of road clubs in Scotland.

For thrill seekers, Scotland has some of the best mountain bike facilities in the world, from the 7Stanes sites located in Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders, to Fort William’s World Cup downhill track and the fun park at Laggan Wolftrax, in the Highlands. All have routes to suit beginner up to expert levels. See www.mtb-highland.com and www.7stanesmountainbiking.com for more information. If you haven’t got a bike, it’s usually possible to pick up a reasonably priced second-hand one on online marketplaces such as Gumtree. However, if you don’t know what you’re looking for and don’t know what size you need, it can be a false economy getting a bargain that’s not suitable or is uncomfortable.

A specialist shop will be able to recommend a bike that suits the kind of riding you want to do and fit you with the right size. Sheila McLeod, from Edinburgh Bicycle Cooperative, says that for the general rider, hybrid and cross bikes are very popular just now. “Cross bikes are inspired by the winter sport of cyclo-cross where road racers fit wider, knobbly tyres to their road bikes in winter and race across country,” she says. “A fast, lightweight, drop handlebar cross bike can be perfect if you want to mix road riding with the odd off-road diversion.”

Hybrids also borrow elements of on-and off-road bikes, but have straight handlebars.

Whatever type of bike you have, the most important thing is to make good use of it and take advantage of its thrilling, fitness-boosting, time-saving, economical qualities.

Comments

There are 1 comments to this article

Order by:

• Newest first
• |
• Oldest first

Page 1 of 1

• 1
• Show all

1

Digory

Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 03:20 PM

Random bicycle riding is not good for everybody.

• Report Unsuitable

Order by:

• Newest first
• |
• Oldest first

Page 1 of 1

• 1
• Show all

Logged in as:

Comment here. Start typing your comment here:

Post comment

Please adhere to our Community guidelines

Your view

Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.