Robert Penn, author of bestselling book ‘It’s All About the Bike’, explains why a London Cycle Map would make life easier for visitors to the capital. 

I lived in London for nearly a decade – the 90s – and rode a bicycle almost every day. I invested a lot of time and ardour in finding the best routes across the city – the safest thoroughfares, the shortcuts and back alleys, the one-ways and parks that turned a simple bike ride into a gift. I remember how hard that knowledge was won. There weren’t many regular cyclists to compare trip notes with then. I kept studying the A-Z; I kept taking wrong turnings on purpose; I kept on nosing down the dead ends.

The knowledge did come, though. And through it, through seeing every common and cemetery, every allotment and every sweeping cityscape, I came to love a place I’d always expected to hate. I’m a country boy, really. And now I’m back in the country. I moved to the Black Mountains, in south-east Wales, eight years ago.

Now, I return to London regularly, on the train, with my bicycle in the guard’s van on the Great Western service from Swansea. Each time, I set off blindly from Paddington to Kentish Town or Dalston, Southwark or Soho. And each time, I seem to come unstuck. I arrive at a junction I know well… only to realise I’m lost. The knowledge is fading. Holes are appearing in my subconscious street map of the city – partly because I’m getting old, and partly because I don’t ink over the routes often enough anymore.

This is why I believe the London Cycle Map is such a good idea. Clear, well-signed routes would be easy to follow. It would be a huge boon not just for me, but for anyone bringing a bike to London. Who knows, it might even encourage a few more people onto two wheels as well.

The London Cycle Map Campaign is being run by Cycle Lifestyle magazine: www.cyclelifestyle.co.uk. Sign the petition here.

Robert Penn is the author of It’s All About the Bike: the Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels: www.robpenn.net / www.bikecation.co.uk

Ted Brown is a Londoner and an avid cyclist who belongs to numerous cycling organisations. He loves to travel around the capital by bike. In this blog he explains why a London Cycle Map would help regular cyclists like him, as well as tourists and new cyclists, make the most of all the wonderful attractions London offers.

As a cyclist, I say “Hooray for London!”. It’s a city crammed with great sights and sites: historic and ultra-modern buildings, galleries, rivers, cafes, parks, pubs, museums, bridges, churches, libraries, squares, shops, canals, restaurants, gardens, clubs, markets, theatres, squares, and quiet pathways. All these attractions are of such variety and quality that millions of tourists travel thousands of miles to visit them. Anyone could spend a lifetime moving through the city yet not see a tenth of what’s available.

The best way to visit London’s attractions, while seeing many others en route, is by bicycle. But there is one problem: how do we find our way to these venues if we’re new to cycling or they’re some distance away from our familiar routes?

The idea for a simple solution already exists – Simon Parker’s London Cycle Map, which shows a grid of individually coloured and named routes. As cyclists we would easily see on the map which coloured routes lead from our starting point straight to the desired locality. Then, following coordinated signs and markings on the relevant streets, we could easily ride to the area. Once there, just a few left or right turns would take us to our exact destination. A similar principle applies when travelling on the Tube or on motorways.

All that’s needed is for the idea to be accepted and financed by the travel authorities. The system would not be expensive, especially compared with the cost of infrastructure for any other means of travel. 

For me and my cycling friend, a London Cycle Map would mean that all destinations in the capital would become incredibly easy to locate, making them more accessible – and enjoyable!

The prize money won by the London Cycle Map Campaign in the GeoVation Challenge 2011 has funded a new website showcasing Simon Parker's London Cycle Map. Simon, who has overseen the development of the new site, and will be managing it, explains below in his own words:

"I am pleased to be able to tell you about the launch of a new website, www.bikemapper.org.uk, which I hope you will be interested to visit.

The purpose of this website is to facilitate the study of a proposed design for a revitalised London Cycling Network. Primarily I am seeking to establish which sections of this network are functional and which are not, and from here it should be possible to build up a complete picture of the current cycling environment. It is hoped that, in turn, this would help to inform the debate about where future investments in cycling would be best placed.

The website is aimed mainly at people who have an interest in developing an amenable cycling environment in the capital, though naturally I would be delighted if the general public also felt inclined to contribute. In particular I ask that people upload any photos they may have of the London streetscape."

It can be hard to write about wind and cycling, without invoking memories of a certain legendary Vic and Bob sketch. But I’m going to steel myself and get on with it.

In fact, steeling yourself and getting on with it is the order of the day when it comes to cycling in windy conditions – the only time when riding drops from being very fun to just quite fun. In the wind, it’s a case of donning your hat and gloves, and facing up to the worst the weather can throw at you as a cyclist.

One of the most important factors in facing up to windy conditions is being realistic about how much longer your ride is going to take. Try mentally adding at least an extra 25% onto your usual journey time, then leaving earlier. Knowing you’re going to arrive comfortably on time will minimise the stress of powering through the mischievous air, which makes boneshakers out of racers, tricycles out of bicycles, and jib-sheets out of jumpers.

Spare a thought also for safety in blustery conditions. Keep a good firm grip on the handlebars, and be more wary of drivers, especially on the main roads. Consider wearing a helmet if you don’t usually. Apart from that, wind is wind. What can you do?

I recently came across this 1920s advertisement for cycling, below. Nearly a century later, It's amazing how relevant and inspiring the words are today (with my little addition, as you'll see!)...

ENJOY IT! Make your trips to and from work a pleasure instead of a mean ride on a hot, crowded car. Ride a bicycle. Enjoy to the fullest the exhilarating tonic of fresh air and the open country.

My, how good you feel! The red blood sings thru your veins, driving away those morning headaches and that old sluggish feeling! You get to work feeling like taking that old job and fairly "eating it up!". Health and a clear brain go a long way towards making a succesful (wo)man. A bicycle goes nearly all the way towards making a healthy (wo)man!

Then think of the convenience. Think of the money saved. Think of the pleasure of long rides in the country - of happy trips over broad roads! Is it any wonder that more people are riding bicycles today than ever before?

The bicycle is the most economical mode of transportation. It is the most beautiful. It is a pleasant benefit for every member of your family.

Order your bicycle today. The more you ride it the more you'll enjoy it!

Thanks to Hannah Lewis for this lovely illustration.

www.phosphorart.com/hannah-lewis

Rail passengers and car drivers were today outraged by the unfairness of the transport system, as it was annouced that cycling fares would rise by a paltry 0% in 2012, remaining at £0.00. Rail fares are to rise by 5.9% in January, while petrol prices remain as high as drivers' stress levels. 

M. Iserable, a spokesperson for People Who Don't Cycle, told Cycle Lifestyle magazine: "I don't see why cyclists should get such a good deal. Cycling already costs nothing, and now prices have been frozen at nothing.

"When you consider the fact that cyclists also benefit from getting fitter, healthier and happier, the 0% fare rise is a real slap in the face for other transport users. With average commuting distances only 8.5 miles in Britain, it seems that just about everything is geared towards helping cyclists."

No cyclists were available to comment - because they were all too busy pedalling joyfully through the streets for free.

I was riding along yesterday and had an experience familiar to any cyclist: a wacky idea popped into my head, completely out of the blue. This happens to me all the time on a bike, to the extent that I recently bought a little dictaphone that I wear round my neck so I can record and remember all those cycling-inspired ideas.

When I say ‘cycling-inspired’, I don’t mean that the ideas necessarily have anything to do with cycling. I mean simply that the action of pedalling, for some unfathomable neurological reason, elicits delightful cascades of unexpected thoughts, like the tunes which come out of those mechanical music boxes kids used to play with.

The surprising thought I mentioned at the start was about football. I hadn’t been thinking about football all day – yet suddenly I had an idea for how to make the premier league more fan-friendly. Eh?

For what’s it's worth, here’s my idea: how about a round of matches between fans of clubs, in which the results count towards the premier league standings? All club members could go into a lottery, and squads of 15 would be picked in a range of categories (age/gender/disability/etc.). Then each club would get drawn against another club and, once a year, players from the first team squad would coach teams in each of the categories, with all the matches played on one amazing ‘fanday’.

Maybe there could also be another lottery, to decide which category’s match would get screened on TV. I for one, would love to watch, say, West Brom and Man City’s veterans slugging it out in front of an audience of millions, knowing that the result might make the difference to who wins the league.

Imagine the excitement when the ‘fanday’ matches were coming up: will you be one of the lucky fans who get picked in the lottery? And imagine how much this would help to reconnect clubs and players with their communities. I'm sure the same could be said for fans and clubs in the lower leagues too.

Anyway, that was just one of the wacky ideas I’ve had while cycling. Have you had any wackier ones? Do you find your brain buzzes with schemes when you’re on a bike?

Cycling is increasingly considered to be an effective method of delivering an emergency response in the police and ambulance services.

To find out more about this fascinating phenomenon, the public is invited to visit the St John Ambulance Cycle Response Unit on Friday 16th December at 6.30 p.m.

Taking advantage of this rare opportunity, visitors can see the fleet of bicycles the Cycle Response Unit uses and hear about the types of events the team attends, with background on the first aid training officers receive and the equipment carried. The team will also be giving a few examples of cycling-specific injuries and appropriate first aid.

The event will take place at Golden Lane just near the Barbican in the City of London. Full address details will be provided to confirmed attendees.

The cost of entry is £7.00, with all proceeds from the event split between charity Sustrans and St John Ambulance. Places are strictly limited so book early to avoid disappointment.

To buy your ticket, visit the Sustrans online shop.

I need to get something off my chest: not everyone is realistically going to be able to ride more than a few miles on a conventional bike, so there are millions of Londoners who will never, say, cycle to work, and certainly will never use the bicycle as their regular means of transport in the capital.

When you think about it, the reason for this is obvious. Cycling requires a level of physical fitness which some people will never have. The level required is a low one, for sure – but not all of us are lucky enough to exceed it all the time.

This is why I love electric bicycles so much. They've got to be the most underrated form of transportation. They’re as canny as conventional bicycles – giving you access to all those short-cuts and pleasant routes – while requiring a fraction of the physical fitness.

Electric bikes also make longer distances more accessible to those of us are fit enough to cycle moderate distances but not much further. For instance, I might think twice about cycling from Woodford Green to Richmond on a conventional bicycle, but on an electric bike… you wouldn’t see me for dust.

That said, you’ll still get some exercise on an electric bike. It’s just less taxing – thanks to the motor assisting you as you go. And, if you like, you can actually turn the assist off completely and ride an electric bike as if it were a conventional bicycle. This means you can manage how much you exert yourself.

The motor on an electric bike is run by a battery, which on many models is removable, making it convenient to charge at home or in the office without having to park the bike next to a wall socket. On higher end bikes, the technology is breathtakingly good, with assisted ranges of up to 86 miles. And there's no road tax or insurance to pay!

All this makes electric bicycles extremely versatile vehicles, suitable for shopping trips, commutes, school trips, weekend leisure rides and even long tours – all of which you can undertake with confidence in your ability to physically see the ride through.

You can even go on electric bike holidays now in the UK. Electric bikes company Spencer Ivy started providing this service a year ago with two holiday partners, Drover Holidays and Capital Sport.

Electric bikes are also the answer to the only reasonable criticism I’ve ever heard of the London Cycle Map Campaign; that the distances represented on the Greater London version of the map are too long to be cycled by all Londoners. It would be silly to deny this. As I said, not everyone is going to be able to make trips of more than a few miles on a conventional bike. But the same can’t be said for electric bikes. There’s no reason why anyone couldn’t cycle anywhere on the London Cycle Map with the assistance of a battery.

I have an electric dream: that one day, millions of Londoners will own an electric bicycle, and will be able to ride throughout the whole capital on a joined-up, signed network of cycle routes. What a joyful place London would be if this dream came true.

Thanks to Va Hua from Spencer Ivy for helping me put this article together. If you’re looking for a recommendation for riding a Spencer Ivy bike, don’t take my word for it. Check out this bloke below.

This film hardly needs introducing. If you're into mountain bikes, great cycling, beautiful filming, and a good sountrack, you'll love it.

There should be a name for that first morning of the year - usually occuring around this time - when you step out of your front door and remember what wintry coldness feels like; it feels like your whole body is one huge, aching bruise with a giant bag of frozen peas on it. *Ah, so that's why I was looking forward to the summer so much last winter*, is the thought that usually follows.

Tragically, another thought which often follows is *there's no way I'm cycling in this weather*. It's a tragedy because this reluctance to cycle when it gets cold is one of the most misleading tricks the human brain can play on itself. The only bit of the hunch which is justifiable is that on a bike your head and hands will indeed get too cold against the hard wintry air, and for a few minutes your whole body likewise will feel a greater chill through effectively increasing the windspeed as you throw yourself against the breeze at 10-20 mph.

But each of these problems is manageable. Within about a minute of beginning your cycle journey your body warms up, due to the moderate effort of pedaling, so you literally no longer feel that colder breeze. Indeed, the former not only cancels out the latter, it actually makes you feel much warmer than you would have done otherwise.

This is what makes cycling, despite appearances, the warmest transport option in cold weather. Warmer than walking; warmer than shivering in a cold metal car; warmer than hanging around waiting on train platforms or at bus stops. For the price of one minute's bracing start, cycling effectively immunises you against the cold.

Albeit there are a couple of exceptions: your head and hands, which on a bike tend to stay stubbornly colder for longer. That's why I called this blog "Hat, Scarf and Gloves". These will be your salvation as a cyclist this winter; your great technological barrier against nature's discomforts. Put your gloves on and even the deepest frost will not bother your snug grip on the handlebars; put on your hat and scarf and your head will be the same warm buzzing happy place it is when you cycle in the summer.

Then, treat yourself to a healthy bit of schadenfreude as you cruise past the tensed-up, teeth-chattering hoards whose unfounded alarmism about being cold on two wheels has deprived them of the warmth of winter cycling.

No, it's not the most succesful movie franchise since Police Academy; it's the excellent Boneshaker Magazine, which is now into its seventh issue. The mag is a celebration of cycling and the people who do it, and is full of articles and anecdotes from around the globe. Congratulations to the Boneshaker editorial team on the launch of issue 7, which comes recommended by Cycle Lifestyle.

www.boneshakermag.com

I’ve just returned from two thoroughly enjoyable days at Play’s The Thing, a conference exploring creative aspects to well-being. Congratulations and thanks to the host Pat Kane and his team; what a great group of people you assembled for a unique and wonderful occasion.

At the conference I gave a talk on cycling. Part of what I wanted to convey was that cycling is a canny way of injecting playfulness into our daily lives. Most people commute, and so twice a day could be bringing out their inner child and getting healthier, happier and fitter on two wheels.

But part of my brief was also to talk about social enterprise; and for this I wanted to champion some of the overlooked good things about modern life and capitalist economies. Here’s a good thing: whenever any two people trade they are basically trusting each other to perform a favour; so as trade has become global, so has trust. This has the knock-on effect of making trading countries less likely to go to war; a phenomenon known as ‘gentle commerce’. Trade also associates positively with democracy and longer life expectancy – all of which should be a cause for great celebration.

By raising these points, I wanted to highlight the commonly committed logical fallacy of confusing the statement “capitalism has some things wrong with it” with “capitalism has everything wrong with it”. The first is correct, the second is ludicrous. Indeed, it can arguably be a little hypocritical; often people who advocate the second statement are so busy denouncing the system, they’re not actually doing anything to improve peoples’ lives within it. Have I missed the point? Should I be sitting in a tent rather than running Cycle Lifestyle? Instead of picking up the phone, writing emails, attending meetings, packaging up and posting magazines, writing articles and lobbying politicians, should I be sipping on a Starbucks coffee and denouncing the modern world? Bringing out our inner child doesn’t have to make us childish.

I’d also include a certain kind of "socialist" in this category of people who ‘denounce rather than do’. I'm not talking about all leftists - just the ones who make you wonder whether their insisting repeatedly that the state "should" do something is actually a mask for them saying “I can’t personally be bothered to do anything”. This is why I offered a defence of the Big Society at the conference. Strong communities are absolutely crucial to the well-being of a society, and so a culture of voluntarism, local enterprise and togetherness is a worthy cause – whether it’s advocated by David Cameron or, indeed, Neil Kinnock, whose passionate keynote speech in Blackpool in 1988 seems to have been forgotten by Guardian readers.

Isn’t this a bit of a digression from cycling? Far from it. Cycle Lifestyle’s London Cycle Map Campaign is calling for a properly signed and mapped network of safer, quieter routes (mostly comprising the 2,000 kilometres of London Cycle Network). This would enable new cyclists to navigate confidently in the capital. Rather than channelling bikes onto main roads, where there is a heavier concentration of dangerous trucks and other fast moving vehicles, a London Cycle Map would make cycling on the backstreets as easy as catching the Tube.

The point is: this, too, is a classic social enterprise approach. It combines realism about the economy with a real desire to fix aspects of it that aren’t working properly. The realism accepts that Londoners are going to need busy main roads and trucks for the foreseeable future. (How else are 10 million mouths going to get fed every day? How else will businesses and tradesmen transport goods and equipment?) The real desire I'm talking about means championing a solution that really could work. If you want to get to the moon on a bicycle, you don’t really want to get to the moon.

Likewise, if you want to get more people cycling but you don’t have a sensible proposal for doing it, your desire can’t be taken as seriously. Regretfully this is an apt description of the London Cycling Campaign’s adversarial but ineffective approach. By campaigning for more cycle routes on main roads (and against lorries) they are picking an unnecessary and unwinnable fight with capitalism. Despite (ironically) having a huge budget and massive resource base, in their hands the bicycle is in danger of becoming a naively regressive symbol (like a tent) rather than a symbol of hope and progress like Parker’s glorious London Cycle Map design.

Yes, you read that right. Here's a magnificent article describing the fascinating 50-year history of pedal-powered flight. Check out the videos: it's pretty breathtaking when you see these machines in the air. Makes you realise that there are still some heroes out there, pushing human and scientific limits.

Who knows, maybe they'll make a discovery as important as the invention of the bicycle itself, and one day we'll all be pedalling our way through the skies of London. Until then, just flying down Spring Hill towards the canal is good enough for me and my bike.