Cycle training (for noddies)

got this sent to me. might be interested for peoples co-workers

We are writing to update you on cycle training in London.
Cycle training is a great way to gain the skills and confidence that make cycling
on London's roads a practical and pleasant experience. TfL is working with the
London Boroughs and Cycling England to provide training. Our aim is to offer free
or subsidised training to children and adults through quality courses provided by
accredited instructors.

To find out how to contact your local training officer:
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/4690.aspx

Also taking place this month is the TfL London Workplace Cycle Challenge. For
more information on this and other cycling related events:
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/modalpages/2663.aspx

Yours sincerely,
Andy Pidduck
London Travel Awareness Team

It's a brilliant scheme.

I had a 2-hour 1-1 training session all paid for by TfL/Borough back in February. The guy followed me on my commute and gave me some really good advice and it definitely boosted my confidence. Highly recommended if you've never cycled in London. Shame no more people do it...

Training isn't just for noddies.

hmm i wonder why they sent it to you dogs...need some training?

i wish this was compulsory!

hmm i wonder why they sent it to you dogs...need some training?

House training maybe... ;p

hmm i wonder why they sent it to you dogs...need some training?
it was on the imperial bike users e-mail

I got one as well.

I am thinking about becoming a trainer. If I can stop at least some people from going down the left of lorries at junctions then I'll be pleased.

VeeVee and I were chatting about it at South beers on Monday.

I am thinking about becoming a trainer. If I can stop at least some people from going down the left of lorries at junctions then I'll be pleased.

VeeVee and I were chatting about it at South beers on Monday.

What does it involve? I think a man of my temperament would make an excellent trainer.

i failed my cycling proficiency

Some info there
http://www.cycletraining.co.uk/training/instructor_training.php

I never took a cycling proficiency test. :(

A friend does the training up in Yorkshire, took a while to develop, but now he's got some work going on with the local schools as cycling to work up there seems about as common as hen's teeth.

I'll be sending my girlfriend on the TfL scheme, I'm just wondering how they got my email address too.

Does it cover trackstands and skid-stops?

I think her concern is more about outfit / bike coordination. Oh and being squashed by lorries and wearing the right underwear at the time.

I am thinking about becoming a trainer. If I can stop at least some people from going down the left of lorries at junctions then I'll be pleased.

VeeVee and I were chatting about it at South beers on Monday.

Thats a good idea, i see so many riders doing scary things on my route and would love to put them right..

i Think Her Concern Is More About Outfit / Bike Coordination.

Hhsg?

There is nothing wrong with outfit / colour co-ordination! Then again, I'm a girl and a designer so it's not all my fault.

I've been riding for about 4 years now in London but would be interested to see what this course covers... I wish all the summer cyclist newbs would take it!

HHSS (Hip Hop Slave Shopper) is her new 'steed' (if I can use that word without getting the reponse of 'its a fucking bike' that I heard at SLBeers the other night).

Its got white tyres, so I guess it qualifies. But its racing green, which I'm not sure goes with her complexion / wardrobe. Its all an excuse to do more shopping isn't it?

As someone says above, its tailored to your experience and bike usage. A friend of mine who did it, would have never commuted to work or even cycled in London beforehand, but now does it daily. Admittedly she has panniers, a tabard and a mountain bike, but its a step in the right direction.

i've just been doing a bit of research into this - more to come in a week or so on that, but in the meantime, what i've managed to glean specifically about bike training is:

• there's not really any evidence that it does any harm: many studies have shown increased knowledge of people riding after having done training, and some have shown that more people ride. one study did show that there were more accidents in kids who'd had cycling training - but that may be confused by the fact that more kids were cycling??

• the new 'bikeability' training has 3 levels. the first two are offered (or planned to be offered) to kids via schools. government funding is available for this, and is increasing - but is still not too much!) the higher two levels (i.e. 2 and 3) are more for adults, including those who already ride. it's kind of like the motorcycle tests, if anyone has taken them, and there is a definite emphasis on being on the road and aware of other traffic, etc.

• this bikeability training is profoundly different from cycling proficiency tests that used to be carried out in schools (some of you may remember the "riding around the playground and then getting a gold star" sort of attitude from 20 odd years ago).

so, quite possibly worth doing for a lot of people, and even for some of the people on this forum (mashton - maybe you should do it before you teach others - or are you going to teach them about safe landings on your elbow?! ;-). what this training does not address, of course, is the attitudes of drivers and the overall emphasis of society against cycling (did you know that 40% of journeys in the UK are only 2 miles, and 68% of journeys are under 5 miles? from the dept. for transport's own figures), which are all factors that have been tackled in holland and germany, where in some places cycling levels are between 50 and 70%.

I gather Cycle Training UK do advanced skills training. a mate of mine got training from them when he got his fixie. Said he rides so differently now and the lesson included quick stopping. And effective use of spuds...

...and it was free coz he lived in hackney.

Where do you get your facts from...especially the one about more kids crashing after training?

Cheers

ROSPA did a report, 2001 i think it was. i followed the references from that

So far my reseacrh has led to the fact that i would need to do a 4 day training course, with cycletraining.co.uk,followed some monitoring and observations of me doing some training. Total cost is £640.

I think there is a way of getting a bursary to cover those costs, but I am not sure of eligibility yet, I will find out more once I am back from holiday in Corsica.

Once you are qualified then I am not sure how you register to do training for bikeability or whoever else TfL uses. Ideally I would like to do it part time, at weekends / evenings.

It looks l;ike I may be taking this summer off work so it would be a cool thing to do over the next couple of months, instead of trying couriering!

I'll keep yas posted.

yeah I was thinking of doing the training to be a trainer. not got the time this year but is a cool thing to do. and it aint for noddies, you learn stuff and are made to think about how you're riding. there's no-one out there that's perfect, and a lot of people i see riding fast think that fitness equals skill.