Aim
The Cycling UK message boards are intended to provide an online meeting place for the cycling community - open to members and non-members alike. We hope that the boards develop and maintain a reputation for friendliness, inclusiveness, helpfulness and knowledge. It should be noted however, this forum is not intended as a first line of official communication with Cycling UK: given the amount of traffic on the forum it is easy for individual posts to be overlooked, thus it is suggested that should you need to communicate with Cycling UK you use the official lines of communication as outlined on the main website https://www.cyclinguk.org/contact.
The ethos of this forum is that cyclists should be able to come together and discuss a whole range of topics in a civil, polite and respectful way. New (and old) members should not be discouraged by a fear that they will be ‘flamed’, will receive aggressive replies, or be generally insulted or belittled just because they have a different opinion to others.
These rules might seem a little long and draconian compared to some, but they are there due to the chaos, abuse and eventual closure of the previous Cycling UK forum, and they are intended to maintain the existence of this one.
General Guidelines
Please be aware, it is notoriously easy to cause offence on message boards by, for instance, a poor choice of words or providing inadequate context. Thus we would urge practising diplomacy in your posts wherever controversy emerges. This isn't to say you cannot put forward your point of view and have a frank exchange with other posters, but that we expect you to do so in a polite, civil, friendly and reasoned way. While expressing opinions, do not make personal attacks or publish any material that constitutes hate speech. Offensive, abusive, defamatory, racist, hateful, sexist, obscene, homophobic, inflammatory, ableist, or otherwise harmful language or material will be removed by moderators, and the author(s) banned at moderators discretion. Any misinformation that may be harmful to others may be removed.
If you are subject to personal attack or believe that posts on the forum may be inappropriate or violate guidelines- DON’T respond to the post - contact a moderator. The preferred means to do this is to report the post or message (see below).
Reporting offensive and inappropriate material on the forum helps the moderators who do not read everything on the forum and may otherwise miss things that should be removed.
Libel and defamation
If you make any accusations, especially against other forum members or Cycling UK and its staff, you should always make sure that proof of this accusation is included. If not included the accusation may be viewed as unfounded and removed without consultation.
Bad language and swearing
Please remember that this is a forum open to people of all ages and sensibilities, thus you should not swear or use thinly amended swearing in posts or Private Messages. Rearranging the letters, or replacing a letter in a word with ";" or "@" still makes it clear what the word is and thus it will still be seen as swearing and not allowed. If, however, you choose to use something like "*******" (i.e. a load of asterixes) or "%£$*&$^%" and thus allow the reader to make up their own expletive - that's perfectly OK.
Remember the future of cycling depends on getting children to do it; we don't want people stopping their children using the forum because of the 'language' that they might pick up from it!
Trolling
Trolling (the process of intentionally making controversial or insulting posts to annoy others) is not allowed. Trolls may be removed without notice.
If you believe that someone is trolling then please report it to the moderators. Do not accuse them of trolling on the thread as this just plays into their hands and gives them more attention. Indeed, if the person wasn’t trolling it is somewhat insulting to be accused as such and may lead to them reacting to you and accusing you of the same.
Registration
Anyone can read the posts on this board, but registration is required in order to post. Once you have chosen your username, you will not be able to change it. Each user may have only one account, except with prior permission from moderators.
By registering you agree to abide by these rules and the decisions of the forum staff. Any infringement of these rules may be taken as an infringement of the registration agreement and thus your account may be terminated without notice. In most circumstances this will not happen, rather the moderators will contact you to discuss issues first, however they maintain the right to terminate accounts without notice. You must have a first post approved in order to post or use the private message (pm) function.
Do not post the same topic on more than one board
Please do not duplicate posts across different boards. This confuses and annoys other posters It causes more work for the moderators. The vast majority of posters check all the sections anyway so duplicate posts will be removed without notification.
If you are not sure that you have posted on the right/correct board, the moderators will (eventually) move it to the best place.
Commercial
Postings of a commercial nature will be removed without warning, unless previously approved for posting by Cycling UK - please contact the moderators for approval.
Do not use your username, signature, website link, avatar or any other data items in your profile to promote a company or business operation.
By ‘commercial’ we refer to anything that is intended to generate an income. The sale of unwanted cycling items does not fall into this category, unless you are ‘trading’ - that is deliberating buying items so that you can then sell them on at a profit. If in doubt please check with the moderators first.
For Sale & Wanted (Small Ads)
- When buying/selling please use the private messaging (PM) facility to keep your contact details away from public gaze.
- Do not comment on another user’s thread unless you are interested in buying/selling that item, and do not attempt to change the subject of the thread. If you suspect that there is an issue with any for sale notice please contact the moderators rather than challenging the poster in question.
- Note that all sales are conducted at the buyer’s/seller’s risk. There is little the forum staff can do if a sale goes bad, however we will try to arbitrate if possible.
- When replying to an advertisement we recommend that you send a private message and add a post to the thread saying that you have sent a private message. This makes it easier for the seller to work out who replied first. However, it is up to the seller to choose who they sell to - replying first does not guarantee that you will get the item. (note that if you are a new user making your first post you will not be able to PM until your post has been approved by a member of the forum staff).
- Some for sale adverts are made on behalf of those that do not have internet access - if this is the case a comment may be attached asking you not to reply to the thread but to use the contact details supplied.
- Please read viewtopic.php?f=32&t=4963 before using the Small Ads section of the forum.
Photos and other graphics may be uploaded, which should help illustrate your stuff on the Sales, Wanted & Swap board. Distasteful images, those that violate forum guidelines or copyright law will be removed without notice.
Using Avatars
You may use an Avatar. The installation facility will be found in your User Profile.
Max file size : 6144 bytes Max Dimensions : 80 x 80 pixels.
Please note the rules under “Photos/Graphics” regarding distasteful or hot linked images.
Privacy & Security
We will do all we can to keep your personal information safe and secure, but there is always a possibility that the board will be hacked. Please bear that in mind before adding too much personal stuff. NEVER enter your Cycling UK membership or any sensitive personal information in posts.
Site Usage Analytics
In common with many websites, we use server log file analysis to provide basic information such as trends in visitor numbers, and which browsers and device types are most popular over time.
For more detailed usage analysis, we also use Google Analytics (https://analytics.google.com/). If you do not want your visits included in this analysis you can use your browser's "Do Not Track" option, or install a plugin like uBlock Origin.
The Cycle Training board
The National Standard Cycle Training board is provided as one of the requirements of government support and funding in that area. It is meant for discussions between those involved in professional cycle training and for public questions to those professionals. Inappropriate material on this board will be removed without warning.
Cycle helmet debates
On almost every cycle forum there is at least one helmet debate, and more often than not it turns nasty. Thus we have created a separate sub board for cycle helmet debates. This brings together all of the debate in one place, making it easier to see if threads on any particular helmet issue have already been started, and also easier for the moderators to police discussion.
Before starting a new thread please be sure that it has not been covered before - most have and so you can save yourself a lot of typing.
When replying please be sure that you have read and understood properly that you are replying to - helmet threads seem to have a tendency to generate misunderstanding.
When replying please be sure that you make your post as civil, respectful and polite as possible - if you are trying to convince someone of your views, it is much easier to do so if you treat them in a civil manner rather than insulting them.
Please try to avoid making statements along the lines of “it’s like this because I say it is”: for instance “you are stupid to ride without a helmet”. This, is guaranteed to cause annoyance and the thread will descend into chaos. Rather try to write “I would not ride without a helmet because ....” and list a set of logical reasons, etc.
Baggage
All baggage should be left at the door - if you have had a falling out with another user on another forum please do not bring it with you to this forum.
If you believe a user has acted inappropriately on another forum and that this may have repercussions on this forum please inform the moderators rather than starting a dispute with that poster on the forum.
Moderation action
The forum staff have the right to remove or edit (without consultation) any post made on the forum, especially if it contravenes any of the forum rules.
In reality, should an issue occur the forum staff will normally contact the user concerned to explain any action that they have taken to try to sort out the issue in a friendly and amicable way. If the user is not happy with what has occurred there is a complaints procedure (see below).
Abuse of forum or Cycling UK staff will not be tolerated and may result in the immediate termination of the user concerned (or even their forum account).
Appeals
If you believe that you have been ill-used by a member of the forum staff then you may appeal.
In the first case you should simply contact that particular member of the forum staff and make your case in a polite, reasoned and respectful way. The staff are more than pleased to listen to views on moderation issues, however if those views contain abusive material then the poster automatically loses their right to appeal.
If you are still unhappy then you should appeal to another member of the forum staff who is either at the same or higher level in the staff hierarchy. Your appeal should be made by Personal Message and you should include within it your name, your Cycling UK membership number and the details of why you are appealing.
Use of the forum is NOT covered by the Cycling UK Formal Complaints Procedure.
Requests to remove links, posts or other data from the forum, including the ‘right to forget’ under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
The right to forget does not include the deletion of content. Content may be deleted at the discretion of forum staff. If you wish content to be deleted, you must provide specific details, the reason you wish the content deleted and the basis of your right to request the deletion.
Please note that user posts should normally be edited by the user, unless moderators have taken action for violations of forum guidelines.
The right to be forgotten applies where the information is inaccurate, inadequate, irrelevant or excessive for the purposes of data processing. Forum staff may request additional information. Staff decisions are final.
For more information about GDPR, please visit https://www.gov.uk/data-protection.
The Private Messaging (PM) system
The PM system, provided within this forum, enables a user to send a message directly to another named user, out of public view.
It is particularly appropriate to use it when using the Small Ads, where there is a need to communicate personal details, etc.
It starts working only AFTER the user's first (public) posting is approved by moderators.
Reports
Posts and PMs can be reported to the moderators using the ‘!’ (exclamation) button on the right side of a post (top for Prosilver board style, and bottom for subsilver2). The hover-over label reads, “Report this post”, or “Report private message”. This should be done in cases where someone has violated forum guidelines, such as making a personal attack, posting offensive material, sending a PM that is abusive or offensive in nature etc.
Note that the contents of a reported PM are viewable to the reviewing moderator - with the original contents.
Privacy
"Private" in the PM system is a relative term. i.e. They are private in that you are communicating directly with another forum user and this is not publicly visible. The forum staff are ONLY interested the contents of individual PM messages when they have been reported and are judged to provide evidence of a breach the forum rules.
PMs are NOT private in the general sense that :-
- They are stored in a database as plain text.
- Recipients of PMs may copy and use the contents.
Our safeguarding policies are designed to provide advice about current legislation and to provide you with information and guidance on how to report a safeguarding concern. If you need to report a concern please see our Cycling UK safeguarding policies page for all documentation required.
The above text has been edited and amended 14 June, 2022 by admin. Original text is posted below for reference.