How many of us would do this now..
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Stick Legs
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Mental, big respect due!
I was not 'black catting' just pointing out that as a previous poster stated needs must. The next year everyone had cars so we all drove.
I was not 'black catting' just pointing out that as a previous poster stated needs must. The next year everyone had cars so we all drove.
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I used to cycle from Huntingdon to Hunstanton fully loaded with camping gear.
Might do it again this summer.
Might do it again this summer.
Rode from Winchester to near Solihull to visit my parents via a 113-mile scenic route through the Cotswolds last summer on my race bike. Exhausting, but great fun (descent into Stow-on-the-Wold a bit hairy though). Took 9 hours including two puncture stops, two refreshment stops plus umpteen other stops due to a loose saddle clamp.
Parents actually live in Wolverhampton, but didn't fancy playing with the traffic in and around Brum so caught the train from Dorridge onwards!
Intend to repeat the experience this summer having bought a "new" road bike so will see how I fare on that.
David
Parents actually live in Wolverhampton, but didn't fancy playing with the traffic in and around Brum so caught the train from Dorridge onwards!
Intend to repeat the experience this summer having bought a "new" road bike so will see how I fare on that.
David
I think a lot of it is psychology. I tell people at uni, young people, most of whom are aged 18 - 21, and a lot thinner than me about my my modest (8 miles each way)commute. They think I must be super fit, which is nonsense. I'm sure they'd all be fitter than me, It's just that I don't think cycling's hard.
There's a dependency on cars for transport, and a perception that cycling is difficult, a sport where you need to be committed to in order to be capable. That's true at the very top end, but with it comes this idea that you can't do certain cycling tasks without a certain bike (got to get my touring bike or I can't tour, downhill bike to go downhill). That's nonsense too. The experience is optimised on a specialised machine, but not impossible.
Compare where we are now with the average cyclist of the 50s, pretty much the golden age of club cycling in Britain. Most clubmen only had one bike, and it was a major investment. My old 1948 Clubman was £22 3s 8d when it was new according to Sheldon, providing you bought it as a singlespeed. The best gearing you could get for it - a four speed hub - was extra.
The average wage at the time was £4 12s 2 1/2d for a 47.5 hour week. If you bear in mind food as a third of that and the Clubman was not a really high end bike, you can see what a commitment owning a club bike was, and that it had to earn its keep.
So in short yes, we've gone soft.
There's a dependency on cars for transport, and a perception that cycling is difficult, a sport where you need to be committed to in order to be capable. That's true at the very top end, but with it comes this idea that you can't do certain cycling tasks without a certain bike (got to get my touring bike or I can't tour, downhill bike to go downhill). That's nonsense too. The experience is optimised on a specialised machine, but not impossible.
Compare where we are now with the average cyclist of the 50s, pretty much the golden age of club cycling in Britain. Most clubmen only had one bike, and it was a major investment. My old 1948 Clubman was £22 3s 8d when it was new according to Sheldon, providing you bought it as a singlespeed. The best gearing you could get for it - a four speed hub - was extra.
The average wage at the time was £4 12s 2 1/2d for a 47.5 hour week. If you bear in mind food as a third of that and the Clubman was not a really high end bike, you can see what a commitment owning a club bike was, and that it had to earn its keep.
So in short yes, we've gone soft.
I used to ride my bike the 8 miles or so to the wed night 10mile TT, and then ride back again. Also rode to a few local MTB & cyclo-x races. And on sundays I would ride 12miles to meet up with the MTB club, then quite often do a 40 miler and ride back (though I could always get the train most of the way if I was knackered).
Back then (early 90's) I didn't have a car so I never thought anything of it. Nowadays I've grown lazy, anywhere further than 10miles away and I'll chuck the bike in the car to get me there & back :roll:
Back then (early 90's) I didn't have a car so I never thought anything of it. Nowadays I've grown lazy, anywhere further than 10miles away and I'll chuck the bike in the car to get me there & back :roll:
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