York Rally and Eroica Britannia

What a month June was for cycling events. Most notably for me the return of the York Rally as well as the second run of Eroica Britannia in Bakewell. 2 events in spectacular cycling areas bringing people together socially around our passion for cycling.

York Rally

Martyn Bolt, Councillor for Yorkshire and Humber, provided me with his comments on York Rally: 'It was an absolute pleasure to see York Rally back on the calendar this year, now under the stewardship of a fully voluntary committee. I toured the event and went out for a ride chatting to cyclists & CTC members as one of the region's CTC Councillors and there was unanimous praise from everyone I spoke to.

Naturally there have been changes to the format to reflect this but the foundations of this historic & traditional CTC event are in good hands, as seen by the camp site being very busy, and a good attendance from families

Trade tents, saddlebag sales & auctions were complimented by the displays from  cycling clubs & bodies and refreshment stalls along with a comprehensive ride programme and the return of the Sunday church service which I am told was at capacity.

The event is also supported by a sportive in September , https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/events/details/126982/York-Rally-Grande-Classic
Whilst the organisers are now hoping to return to an annual event, as we write the date cannot be confirmed  as it has to fit in with the small matter of horse racing on the Knavesmire

Watch the website  www.yorkrally.org  for future news'

I also spoke to Reg Tuckwood, a stalwart of our Nottinghamshire member group and he went along for the day and had a fabulous time meeting up with long and enduring acquaintances.

Eroica Britannia

I was torn between the events, and the only thing I can say is please please please plan better organisers to have these on different weekends next year. I had already committed to go to Eroica with friends when the dates for York came out. It was a fabulous event drawing people from all cycling backgrounds to a family event in the centre of Bakewell. Quite honestly it also drew in a lot of people who would never class themselves as cyclists but may use a bike from time to time. Over 40,000 people attended for this extravaganza. I was a CTC volunteer on the rides on Sunday and spent from 6am in a cool and wet busy road junction encouraging the brave cyclists on their way. A great weekend was had by all.

Jaki Lowe
East Midlands Councillor

Member Conference 10th October

We have been talking this year about the changes in National Office and too often that has felt like giving bad news. This year the format of events surrounding the AGM changed. Instead of having the networking event bolted on this year sees the first member conference being launched on 10th October at the University of Warwick and this feels like a really positive step forward.

This is something that I have been very keen to see to build better and more productive relationships and connections between our staff in National Office and our members. So here is some information and I hope that we will see many of you there.

This is the link to register your attendance:

https://www.ctc.org.uk/member-conference-registration

There will also be information in the edition of Cycle coming out this week.

In summary (overall and then summarising each strand of workshops):

Cycling as a spectator sport and as sport to take part in has won over many more hearts in recent years, with some of our greatest British cyclists becoming household names too. So what could all of this mean for CTC? How could we benefit from this surge in public support for cycling? Is there a way that we could harness this admiration for the good of cycling? Can we turn would-be-cyclists into always-cyclists? Does this public support make for fewer barriers to cycling?

Our members’ conference is designed to answer these questions and more. We will explore how CTC could benefit most from this bicycle boom - We will showcase our successes and share our challenges with you. We also hope to inspire and equip you with new ways to support CTC’s work at a local level.

We are running six workshops as part of our members' conference. These are all designed to share best practice examples from local groups, members and volunteers, and to equip you with the resources and knowhow to take forwards great support and promotion of CTC in your area. Three will be held during the morning session and three during the afternoon session. As the sessions run at the same time, you can only select one morning workshop and one afternoon workshop.

In our Campaigns Workshops, we will be introducing you to the tools and methods you could use to make positive changes happen for cycling. Whether that's securing greater funding investment in infrastructure, improving and standardising the design standards used by local authorities when they create new cycling spaces, or taking action on cases of injustice through the courts, we will be showcasing our success stories and showing how to take positive steps locally in support for cycling.

In our workshops on making cycling accessible and welcoming to all, we will be joined by some of our colleagues who have taken part in either delivering or benefitting from our inclusive cycling projects. They will be telling us about the positive impact of our work on them and on their local communities. We will also be setting out some simple ways for you to make cycling accessible to all in your area.

In our workshops on promoting cycling in your local area, we will be talking about some of the great successes our local cycling groups and affiliate groups have experienced in recent months in recruiting new members to join them on their rides, and on their positive efforts to raise the profile of cycling and CTC in the local media. We will also be sharing some new resources and 'how to' guides to show you the simple steps to take to create a new CTC group.

Jaki Lowe

East Midlands Councillor and Trustee

John Radford Memorial Ride

On Sunday 2 August 2015, Huddersfield and District CTC will hold a ride to honour and remember John Radford, a CTC Councillor who tragically lost his life on 5 November 2014 from injuries sustained after being knocked off his bike in July 2013. The ride is free but donations in aid of CTC’s Road Justice campaign, which John supported, will be gratefully accepted.

Jaki Lowe