Plymouth had its first-ever Sky Ride recently and even the weather co-operated, as it was a beautiful sunny day.I convinced my wife to come along, and our youngest was on the tag-along. Some snacks & a flask of hot chocolate went into the panniers on my bike, and we were off to the start on ... Read more

I was told, via my Devon Coast to Coast cycling holidays site that Gem Bridge was open, as in fully open. This was on Saturday, and I immediately made plans to cycle out there, as Gem Bridge is only about 20 miles from my home.Now John Lennon wrote “life is what happens while you’re busy ... Read more

Just a gentle reminder that the next Dark Side Ride isn’t all that far away! If you don’t have a decent light for your bike yet, then I suggest you start looking around soon. If you’re anywhere near Plymouth, or more accurately, Yelverton on the 23rd of June, then join us! And if you don’t ... Read more

On Saturday I went cycling with the specific plan to go and see for myself how Gem Bridge is coming along. Various things impacted on my plans, resulting in my only leaving home after 2 pm. As per usual, I was prepared with a large flask of coffee, tools, rain coat and a few other ... Read more

While I still haven’t had any real opportunity to go and see for myself what the state of play is at Gem Bridge, I was e-mailed a few photos by a friend from work. As you can see, the abutments either side of the bridge are nearly done, although not surfaced yet. Also, there are some railings missing ... Read more

I’ve been forwarded new photos of Gem Bridge, as well as photos of Grenofen tunnel, by Mad Scientist. I was really glad of these pics, as sadly I’ve not had the opportunity to cycle out to Gem Bridge for some time, and the last update on the Devon County Council site was back in January. ... Read more

Lately there appears to have been more vitriol than usual from drivers against cyclists. I’m not simply a cyclist, but like most adult cyclists in the UK, I’m a driver too, as well quite often a pedestrian. This allows me to view things from distinctly different perspectives. Once upon a time, everybody was a pedestrian, ... Read more

Women the world over sometimes suffer enormously from rape, or the risk of rape – this is well known. What is less well know is how some women are made to suffer after having been raped. The fictitious conversation below puts it in context: This is the culture of victim blaming, but it isn’t limited to rape ... Read more

Do you ever get that feeling that peeing straight into a hurricane? That’s how I’m feeling about cycling advocacy right now. For starters, there’s the stupid in-fighting between various cycling factions. Pro-segregation, anti-segragation, pro-helmet, anti-helmet, pro-this, anti-the-other. Seriously, it makes me sick! And that is BEFORE we get to local authorities’ pathetic excuses for not delivering ... Read more

I had reason to drive to Tavistock today, and on the way back I had literally a few minutes spare, so I quickly checked on the progress made with Gem Bridge. Only one photo, but it speaks volumes! Gem Bridge and some random dog walker The deck is in place throughout, and the railings are ... Read more

This morning I spent in the company of some Sustrans volunteer rangers. I’m not a ranger, and I’m not exactly overly fond of Sustrans, but that relates to how it is structured. I do have a lot of time for what Sustrans does! So why did I spend my morning with Sustrans rangers, I hear ... Read more

The Times today have taken an extraordinary step by leading with a story that is all about increasing cyclists’ safety. If you read many cycling blogs, then you’d already know this. And no, I’m not jumping on any bandwagon here – I’ve always been on it! Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like The Times. ... Read more

I’m planning on offering fully escorted Devon Coast-to-Coast (C2C) tours along National Cycle Network route 27 (NCN 27) over two or three days, to small groups, or perhaps even individuals. Ilfracombe The tours will include overnight accommodation at selected B & B’s along the way, as well as having all your luggage transferred each day ... Read more

The Bere Alston peninsula is a strip of land sandwiched between the Tamar and Tavy rivers, and is conveniently close to Plymouth.Never having been there before, I read about cycling there from a far better blog than this one. Earlier today I took the opportunity to go cycling there. There is a marker “Bere Alston ... Read more

Spending some time going through the Plymouth.gov.uk site, I stumbled across some really good sections. For starters, there is the Cycling Journey Times page, which predictable enough shows you how long it would take an average cyclist to ride between various areas in the city, as seen below: I also stumbled onto the Plymouth City Council Cycling ... Read more