Behind the scenes at Pedal Power by Liz Day

Here’s a guest post from fellow trainee journalist, Liz Day, on Cardiff-based cycling charity Pedal Power.

Some photos in and around Pedal Power and Spokes Cafe.

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If you have ever walked along the Taff Trail on a sunny Saturday morning, you may have noticed all kinds of weird and wonderful bikes.

These bikes look like strange hybrids, with two seats, three wheels and bizarrely oversized baskets. Some even have saddles which look like armchairs. These unusual bicycles all belong to cycling charity Pedal Power’s highly specialised fleet.

The charity was founded by Sybil Williams and has been running for 10 years. Sybil used to be a physiotherapist at Ely Hospital and was determined to find ways to keep her patients moving.

She said: “Many people with long-term disabilities never had a chance to leave the hospital. Lying in a hospital bed isn’t good for you. You need to get out into the fresh air and keep active.

“I used to organise walking groups, but we could only walk around the hospital car park, which was grey and dull. There was very little greenery and I wanted to get people out into the community.”

Sybil decided to buy some bikes for the hospital and then worked with the council to set up a cycling centre on Pontcanna Fields in 2000. The centre proved so popular, she soon decided to extend the service to benefit the whole community.

She said: “Originally, we just targeted people with disabilities, but having the chance to get on a bike put such a huge smile on people’s faces, we decided more individuals should be able to benefit from the centre.”

The centre now houses more than 200 specialised bikes in its large bike shed, while the popular Spokes Café provides a social hub for cyclists to meet up and enjoy a cup of coffee after a long ride.

Nia Morgan, operations manager, said: “We cater for pretty much every type of disability. It’s all about finding the right bike for the right person. Many disabled people have never had the chance to learn to ride a bike.”

But the charity does much more than simply provide the right bike for its cyclists. It also trains disabled volunteers, giving them the opportunity to learn real-world skills and enhance their employability.

Nia said: “We have about 100 volunteers and we take on five disabled volunteers every 12 weeks. The supported volunteers choose a training programme which corresponds to their interests, giving them the opportunity to work in the bike shed, office or kitchen.

“We find this really improves our volunteers’ self-confidence and gives them the skills they need to get a job. Some of them have been isolated in the past, so working here gives them the chance to make new friends and be part of a community.”

Some of the volunteers also get involved in fundraising. Sybil said: “One volunteer was a police officer for 21 years, but she was forced to retire after she broke her leg in a car crash. She had to rest the injury and ended up gaining a lot of weight.

“She bought a bike, but it was the wrong bike for her and sat in her shed for several years. She joined us 15 months ago and undertook a sponsored slim to give her the motivation to lose weight. She has already lost five stone and raised more than £200.”

Pedal Power also offers one-to-one tuition for people over 50, enabling them to improve their skills and learn how to repair and maintain their bikes. Nia said: “One of our students is 84 and had never even been on a bike before. It just goes to show you are never too old to learn.”

Crackdown on Cardiff cyclists dubbed an “intimidation tactic”

A scheme in which Cardiff cyclists have been given leaflets warning they could be fined up to £500 for cycling on the pavement and £2500 for skipping red lights has been dubbed an “intimidation tactic” by cycling campaigners.

The scheme, which was put in place following complaints from residents, is being run by South Wales Police and Cardiff Council to combat the increasing number of collisions involving pedestrians and cyclists on pavements. Police were made aware of the problem after residents’ complaints were heard at PACT meetings.  Figures on the number of incidents were unavailable at the time of publication.

Police were handing out flyers to people cycling on Queen Street yesterday, where cyclists are banned. The operation has also been carried out in Cathays. A total of 110 leaflets were issued to cyclists committing offences last weekend.

Shoppers on Queen Street, where cycling is banned

Bicycles parked up on Queen Street

South Wales Police confirmed some cyclists have been issued with £30 fixed penalty fines for breaching the ban over the past week, as a result of the operation.

Sergeant Louise Lucas, of South Wales Police, said: “Our concern is the safety of all city centre users and we wish to remind cyclists that this is a pedestrianised area where cycling can result in a £30 fixed penalty notice. Police officers and PCSOs will continue to tackle this issue as part of their daily patrols in Queen Street.”

The leaflets are designed to make cyclists aware of the highway code. The rules on the leaflet are as follows:

• Rule 60: At night your cycle MUST have white front and red rear lights lit.  It MUST also be fitted with a red rear reflector (and amber pedal reflectors), if manufactured after 01/10/85).

• Rule 64: You MUST NOT cycle on the pavement. Maximum fine £500.

• Rule 68: You MUST NOT carry a passenger unless your cycle has been built or adapted to carry one.  You MUST NOT hold onto a moving vehicle or trailer or ride in a dangerous, careless or inconsiderate manner.  Maximum fine £1000.  You MUST NOT ride when under the influence of drink or drugs, including medicine.

• Rule 69:  You MUST obey signs and traffic light signals.  Maximum fine £2500.

• Rule 71: You MUST NOT cross the stop line when the traffic lights are red.  Some junctions have an advanced stop line to enable you to wait and position yourself ahead of other traffic.  Maximum fine £2500.

Cardiff Council said: “After the issue was raised at a PACT meeting, we decided to work together on the initiative. We are giving leaflets to cyclists using the pavement, carrying passengers or jumping red lights. We want to educate cyclists who commit these offences.”

Members of the Cardiff Cycling Campaign condemned cycling on pavements, but at a meeting last night, some members felt the leaflets were being used as an intimidation tactic. Some members said public money was being spent on projects, which do not offer solutions to the problems faced by cyclists in the city.

Iona Gordon, Riverside Councillor and Cardiff Cycling Campaign member, said: “Generally we do not advise cycling on pavements at all, but very poor cycling facilities have been put in place in areas like Cathays Terrace, which suggests that it’s okay to cycle on pavements.

“I find it appalling in a capital city where we are trying to encourage more people to cycle and use public transport, because that is the way to get about a city. People in London don’t expect to drive their cars into the city centre and we should be working to get to that position too.

“Queen Street is a really important route across the city and until they promote safer cycling on these routes which go north of Queen Street, such as Boulevard De Nantes, and then to the south on Mill Lane, down past the hotel and towards the prison. Until those roads are what I would call cycle-able for ordinary cyclists, Queen Street does become a route of choice.

“When there are too many people on the pavement, most cyclists will get off because it becomes difficult to weave in and out. You just get the odd few who give cyclists a bad name.”

Coun Gordon said during a previous trial cyclists could use Queen Street before 10am and after 4pm, so people could avoid roads during rush hour.

The leaflets direct cyclists who do not have the confidence to ride on the road to Cycling Training Wales – a Cardiff-based organisation which runs cycling courses aimed at beginners and commuters. Training manager, Nick Canham, of Cycling Training Wales, said the organisation had not had anybody approach them on the back of the campaign yet.

He said: “The people who come to us generally use the road and not the pavement, but they are uncertain about the right way to go about it. On the training courses I explain the principles of positioning – taking the lane to prevent people passing unsafely, not riding in the gutter and making sure you can be seen.

“A lot of people I train said they know this is the sensible thing to do, but they were not sure what they were allowed to do on the road.

“The people we get on the courses generally do not cycle on the pavement. People just lack confidence. There are quite a lot of people around who are pavement cyclists, particularly in Cathays, because they think that’s the safer option, but it isn’t.”

Mr Canham said the courses cover some theory before taking cyclists out on the road to put what they have learnt into practice, both in residential areas and in the city centre.  “I would say feeling unsafe on the road is a bit of an issue for cyclists,” Mr Canham added.

Katie Barrett-Goode, 36, of Llandaff North, was cycling with her two children and husband in the city yesterday. They had cycled into the city on the Taff Trail, but she was not aware cyclists are not allowed to ride on the pavements.

She said: “I understand why you can’t cycle on Queen Street because it’s pedestrianised, but I can’t take the kids on the roads in the city centre because it’s just too busy and dangerous.”

Cycling safety has been brought to the forefront recently, with cycling groups campaigning nationwide for improvements in road safety.

North to south Wales on a bike

Lôn Las Cymru follows the National Cycle Network routes 8 and 42 which cover the length of Wales, from Holyhead in the north to Cardiff and Chepstow in the south.  Sustainable transport charity, Sustrans, grade the route “Challenge”, making it one of the hardest National Cycle Network routes in the UK.

National Cycle Network route 8 sign

I discovered the reasoning behind the grade after a four day solo ride over 250 miles of terrain, including three mountain ranges, and a collective ascent of 5000m.  If there is one thing a prospective challenger should know it is this: when the Sustrans guide reads “those on road bikes would find even some of the tarmac surfaces too rough,” take note.  The book knows best!

Pre-trip preparation included kitting out my ROAD bike with a new tyre, luggage rack and small bag, as well as buying a pump, tyre levers, some inner tubes and a set of allen keys – all of which I had, embarrassingly, managed to survive without in six years of being a roadie.  Perhaps more embarassingly, I knew zilch about bike maintenance and so called on Simon Cycle’s of Cowbridge to teach me the basics.  (Thanks for your patience Si!)

Bike (aka Ms Banana) all set to go!

Squeezing four-days-worth of kit into the world’s smallest makeshift pannier proved very difficult.  So difficult, in fact, I forgot deodorant and pyjamas, and had to wear the same clothes for five days.  Probably for the best I was cycling solo.

Maps and bike in hand, I caught the train from Cardiff Central to Holyhead which stopped at every town en route and even crossed into England before finally arriving at the destination.

On arriving in Holyhead, following the discovery of a leaking oil can in my bag and the realisation I had to spend a night in north Wales’s least attractive town, I began to wonder why I had decided to cycle the length of Wales in my week off.  These thoughts were confirmed on arrival at The Anglesey Outdoor Centre – home for the night.

 

Day One: Holyhead to Porthmadog

Torrential rain and poor route markings made the morning leg a tricky affair.  Poor sense of direction meant that I cycled a loop, not once – oh no, no – not twice, but three times.   I was destined to remain on Anglesey forever.

No sense of direction

Cycling past Penrhos Beach, the old Anglesey Aluminium works, Beddmanarch Bay, the RAF base, River Cefni and Bodowyr Neolithic Burial Chamber, the route offered a glimpse of the Snowdonia hills, shrouded in looming dark rain clouds.  Never had a cyclist been so relieved to see Thomas Telford’s Menai Bridge, built in 1826.

Sodden and traumatised by Anglesey, I got briefly lost in Bangor, among the town’s bustling student population and comparatively busy traffic.  Soon enough I was on the Lôn Las Menai, cycling through woods and then parallel to the idyllic Menai Strait.

Menai Strait

Passing through Caernarfon, there was an opportunity to marvel at the castle and town walls, before joining the Lôn Eifion which intitially runs parallel to the Welsh Highland Railway.

Caernarfon

Start of Lon Eifion

Lôn Las soon flexed its muscles and threw in some steep climbs towards the end of day one.

Almost 68 miles later, I arrived at Cwm Pennant Hostel.  After a shaky start, it is hard to imagine how I ever found the hostel which is at the end of a country track in Gardolbenmaen, about four miles from Porthmadog. The hostel had great facilities, including a secure bike shed, drying room, self-catering kitchen and cosy lounge area.

Day Two: Porthmadog to Machynlleth

Day two brought less rain, but much more in the way of gale force winds in the Snowdonia National Park.  Missing the route markers between Porthmadog and Dolgellau meant I spent more time than I would have liked on the A475.  After locating the elusive blue route signs, it became obvious that the gravelly surfaces were too extreme for a road bike and I resorted to alternative road routes for the rest of the trip.

Entering Snowdonia National Park

Rolling hills

Remote track approaching Cadair Idris

In Machynlleth I stopped for an unholy trinity of coffee, cake and beer.  A visit to the local bike shop revealed a worn bike chain which was in danger of snapping.  Armed with spare chain links, I doubled-back in the direction of the hostel, keeping fingers and toes firmly crossed.

River Dyfi, Machynlleth

Braich Goch Bunkhouse and Inn in Corris is mainly used by mountain bikers due to the high standard of nearby trails.  The bearded dragon and snakes in the lounge were an interesting addition to the hostel’s ambience.

Day 3: Machynlleth to Builth Wells

This being my first multi-day cycling trip, day three was always going to be a bit of a killer.  I had been warned about the mountain road from Machynlleth to Llanidloes, but had underestimated the lung-busting climbs in store.

Impressive scenery coupled with relentless dips and grades made the 20 miles to Llanidloes the most memorable of the trip.  “What goes up must come down” took on a whole new level of meaning and the ecstasy of descending at over 40mph was soon overshadowed by slow, steep climbs.

View from the mountain road

Highs and lows of the mountain road

Nearing the end of the torturous climbs is Llyn Clywedog Reservoir

From Llanidloes onwards I rode the A470 to Builth.  I was covered in oil from a slipped chain, wearing filthy kit and in possession of two knackered knees.

Trericket Mill in Erwood, 10 miles beyond Builth could not have been a greater reward.  Although more expensive than previous hostels, Trericket Mill was money well-spent. It has a bunkhouse, campsite and B ‘n’ B.  The latter is housed in a red-bricked converted mill.

Trericket Mill: if Carlsberg did veggie B ‘n’ B’s …

Owners, Nicky and Alistair, are passionate about environmental issues and vegetarian cuisine.  They have a veg patch in the garden and cook everything from scratch.  Delicious Glamorgan sausages, a selection of Welsh Ales and homemade limoncello were undoubtedly the culinary highlights of the trip.

Day four: Erwood to Cowbridge

Having taken an entirely unsuitable bike on the trip it was impossible to follow the Taff Trail back to Cardiff.  The monotony of the busy A470 was not ideal, but did provide some good views of the Brecon Beacons before heading to Merthyr and then home via Pontypridd.

Lôn Las Cymru is no John O’Groats to Land’s End, but it is most definitely a challenge.  As any road cyclist knows, those long, lonely miles in the wind and rain might not be the most enjoyable, but they are sometimes where you find out how far you can push it.

CRANK IT UP CYMRU!