Cycling in lockdown
I have had a gaping developmental delay in my cycling ambition. It started off when I taught my brother to cycle. Well, pushing him down slopes was not at all difficult and it was a success. I have no memory of anything else – typical of memories.
Fast forward five years down the line, my uni friends tried to teach me and I jammed my bike into the wall. Unfortunate then that our professor decided to come between the wall and my bike! After a good 15 – 20 years, I watched my friend cycle and I dusted off my past memories, thankfully she offered to teach me. She found a plain, long slope…it had to be a slope to do the trick. I couldn’t believe it! I took off with steady hands with my friend running besides me or so I thought untill I turned around and spotted my friend still on the top of the slope cheering me on. I nursed my bruises and decided on a straight road the next day. She felt I had fairly good balance, so instructed me, “keep your hands steady and don’t hit those breaks hard”. Not a hard instruction to follow, until the ditch appeared and the instruction lost its meaning! Did it just manage to scratch my ambition too?
My husband realised that even with a slipped disc, a slippery confidence and a disco of cycling memories, I still wanted to cycle. He wrapped me with persuasions (annoyingly) and brought me a gift for my birthday. A bicycle!
2020 has two zeros just like the wheels of the bike. This must be the year then…especially with less traffic…let’s go!
Jubee Matthews
Health advisor
Find lots of great activities to do on our Be Active page.
Find out more about cycling in Merton on the Merton Council website
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