Cycling UK Forum

As a kid I used to ride around the wasteland (basically wild growth, with a slight muddy track round it) on a road bike - couple of "jumps" on a circuit.
Used to go down to the river path by the Thames, cycled from Windsor to Maidenhead (and back) for fun at about age 10 (with an older brother)

Actually I still have no idea:
- How far that is
- Whether we had told our parents
- Whether we got in trouble on (presumably late) return

I'm pretty sure we didn't have 10p for a phone...

Then did DofE Gold expedition by bike over dartmoor - that was fun, 5 days unsupported tour.

Then stopped, my first job was too close to cycle (faster to walk) and subsequent jobs were too far, until 6 years ago. Then I got a job with a couple of miles possible cycling, and out came the old BSO.

That job lasted 8 months, then I got a job 10 miles away. "I can cycle that" I thought - don't need to burn extra fuel...
Drove the (big) car to the office with the bike in the back and planned to cycle home - felt OK in the morning, so cycled back as well.
Took about an hour each way when I started... After 3 months it was under 40 minutes, after 6 it was closer to 30.

That got me hooked, enough to sell the second car and rely on cycling - I'd done a winter by that point, so there was a case of "I'm not a fair weather cyclist" any more, if I have a car I'll be tempted to use it.

Progressed to three wheels after a year or so of that commute (having upgraded brakes, drivetrain etc).
Occasionally I think that a simple two wheeled, hub geared, coaster braked, dynamo powered lightweight might be useful - sometimes I borrow a Brompton when I'm working away from home...

ukdodger wrote: In contrast to Si in another thread I have no idea why carrying a book or tray on a bike is a problem. He'd no doubt faint at seeing what I've carried.

I think that you may have mis-read the other thread....it was not about not being able to carry things generally, but on how to carry awkward/delicate things in emergencies when you weren't expecting them. On the other bike I have carried 70kg of compost in the past...obviously I was equipped to collect it on that ride.

As for wandering off alone - we used to roam for miles from about age 8 upwards, never told parents where we were going, and they never really worried about it....all part of growing up: get your self into scrapes and get yourself out of scrapes.
I can imagine that it is different for modern kids, townies especially, given both the increase in traffic and press-driven stranger-phobia.

I think kids, even today, could be much more capable than they are generally given credit for. They just aren't given chances to show it.

I think that is totally wrong. They have far more chance to show it but far less desire.
I have made the mistake of providing cycles for my son but he cant be bothered riding or fixing them, when he can get carried around in people's cars.
We didnt get carried around or have money spare for buses or buying new bike parts so we HAD to improvise.

I could take some of the blame as I have found scrap bikes and done them up for my children, so they never had any need to do it themselves. If we had had Ipads, home computers etc we probably would have sat around the house all day getting fat too. Boredom was probably a big motivator.

when teaching bikeability I still meet a number of kids who do know fair bit about bike mechanics. And as for those who don't, they often seem eager for me to show them how to fix something rather than just fix it for them (when there is time).

Anyhoo, I might be running a bike mechanics course for kids later in the year so I'll soon find out!

Anyhoo, I might be running a bike mechanics course for kids later in the year so I'll soon find out!

Yes but my son (and many like him) couldnt be bothered attending it even if somebody drove him there.

meic wrote:

Anyhoo, I might be running a bike mechanics course for kids later in the year so I'll soon find out!

Yes but my son (and many like him) couldnt be bothered attending it even if somebody drove him there.

Mine is partly for a sort of youth club / social enterprise type thing, and partly for a school, so they should, in theory, already have shown the will to get out the house and be there, or will have been made to go and will find spannering bikes preferable to doing maths or English.

It may be that their home environment isnt as comfortable as my son's is.

meic wrote:

I think kids, even today, could be much more capable than they are generally given credit for. They just aren't given chances to show it.

I think that is totally wrong. They have far more chance to show it but far less desire.
I have made the mistake of providing cycles for my son but he cant be bothered riding or fixing them, when he can get carried around in people's cars.
We didnt get carried around or have money spare for buses or buying new bike parts so we HAD to improvise.

I could take some of the blame as I have found scrap bikes and done them up for my children, so they never had any need to do it themselves. If we had had Ipads, home computers etc we probably would have sat around the house all day getting fat too. Boredom was probably a big motivator.

Well my mother only just knew which end of a hammer was the business end. I don't think she could have fixed up a bike for me. The only way, in my view I could have a bike, was to do something about it myself. The lack of television and computers probably contributed to how I spent my time, but I also recall spending lots of time reading, especially in the winter.

Hi,

meic wrote:

I think kids, even today, could be much more capable than they are generally given credit for. They just aren't given chances to show it.

If we had had Ipads, home computers etc we probably would have sat around the house all day getting fat too. Boredom was probably a big motivator.

Tin cans an a bit of string - water pistols - Dr Who - Going to the beach on sunday - going to the sweet shop - Jumping off walls and scratched knees
Later, planks nails and push chair wheels, no brakes This was done lying down head first on a 45 mph biking hill

meic wrote:It may be that their home environment isnt as comfortable as my son's is.

Have you considered being crueller? It's for the good of cycling, you know

Well my mother only just knew which end of a hammer was the business end.

My Dad said to me a few years ago, well more than a few he's been dead 10 years, that the engineering talent must have skipped a generation. He was never that forthcoming with praise, so I was quite impressed. I was always making something or tinkering with my bike or something like that. One of the first things my wife, then girlfriend said to my mother was " has he always taken stuff apart". You have to take stuff apart, It's the LAW
I don't think there is the encouragement for engineering like there was. I did a night school course in the local comp and there was one class for metalwork, wood work drawing etc. My school had 3 for metalwork,1 for woodwork, and 3 for drawing.

Apart from the odd break here and there, through either theft, injury or the ex and her whining about it, I've never been without a bike.

I first stayed upright after my dad let go of my Raleigh Budgie and I tore the rear mudguard off later after several wheelies
Then came the Raleigh Burner and lots of crashes from showing off to my girlfriend...I was 9 and women as we all know love big jumps.
A Raleigh Mustang was my first mountain bike and I had it a whole week after santa brought it when some scrote stole it from outside the post office. Santa said didly squat but I believe my ear is still slighty red from the clout my dad gave me.
My first road bike was a Raleigh Flyer (my dad thought raleigh were the best) and was the bike on which I had my first ever collision with a car aged 12. I failed to look behind as I turned across the lane and was hit by a driving instructor of all people. Dad fixed the back wheel and two weeks later I ran into the side of a Montego. Bike was wrecked and once again dad wasn't a happy bunny.
Several bikes and wreckages later I left school, got a job and bought my own bike from Freemans or Littlewoods or one of them catalogues. A Raleigh M-Trax Ti-1000. A TITANIUM framed mountain bike for £500??? WOW! I thought and had it. Joined the local mountain bike club and started racing and buying purple bits for it. I had that almost a year and no sooner than I'd got it back from a respray and my first ever suspension forks being fitted, it was stolen from outside the bike club owners bike shop.
A couple bikes later and I decided mountain biking was too expensive and dear old dad lent me the money to buy a proper road bike, a Giant Peleton. Super light and super fast. Too fast I discovered as shortly after joining the Bolton Clarion and on one of my first club rides to Pendle, I misjudged a corner and hit the grass banking at about 30mph head on and the bike died.
Several more road and mountain bikes later and after a two year break I got into cycling again and haven't looked back.
I haven't been out on the bike for almost a month due to a problem with my right leg but thats being operated on (again) on the 7th Jan and after 2-3 weeks I'll be back to causing more mayhem on the roads. I miss my bike. I'll ride till my legs fall off or they put me away

Neilo wrote:

Well my mother only just knew which end of a hammer was the business end.

My Dad said to me a few years ago, well more than a few he's been dead 10 years, that the engineering talent must have skipped a generation. He was never that forthcoming with praise, so I was quite impressed. I was always making something or tinkering with my bike or something like that. One of the first things my wife, then girlfriend said to my mother was " has he always taken stuff apart". You have to take stuff apart, It's the LAW
I don't think there is the encouragement for engineering like there was. I did a night school course in the local comp and there was one class for metalwork, wood work drawing etc. My school had 3 for metalwork,1 for woodwork, and 3 for drawing.

But they might be able to show us how a new piece of software works or a new PC. Lets face it a lot of things these days are made NOT to be taken apart. 13A plug tops are moulded onto leads for instance. Most things on a bike in my youth I could fix with a few spanners and a vice. Today you need all sorts of specialist tools and parts specific to the bike. Funny thing is I can well remember my mother berating me about how easy my generation was having it compared to hers. "MONEY FOR A BUS.. WE HAD TO WALK. GO OUT AND PLAY.. OH IT'S RAINING.. SO WHAT YOU WONT MELT".

ukdodger wrote:

ChrisButch wrote:(for the uniniated... Kiddiecranks were a device which clamped a mini chainset to the seat tube, complete with tertiary chain to the lower 'real' chainset, at a height which could be varied with leg growth. To begin with my dad also had to clamp wooden blocks to the pedals.)

Amazing. Would like to see one of those.

Set for sale here. I have no knowledge of the seller - just saw them and remembered this conversation.