The Bike Show

Every weekend many tens if not hundreds of thousands of people ride their bikes in the British countryside. But are we taking the time to really understand and appreciate the things we see and places we ride through? Or is it all day dreaming about the next cake stop or going hard for that next personal best on Strava? Mary Ann Ochota has made it her mission to help people discover the history of the landscape by looking out for signs and clues that are often hidden in plain sight. She’s appeared on television presenting documentaries and archeology shows including Time Team and Britain’s Secret Treasures and is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. Continue reading → The post Decoding the Landscape with Mary-Ann Ochota first appeared on The Bike Show.

fter the big victories for London cycle campaigners and the construction of two new fully segregated bike lanes in the centre of the city, the bikelash has begun. Lead by newspapers like the Daily Mail as well as a raft of celebrity commentators, taxi drivers and disgruntled business owners, the reaction to progress in cycle infrastructure has been vociferous. What is bikelash, why is it happening and what can we do about it? Joining Jack Thurston are Clare Rogers of the Enfield Cycling Campaign and Robert Wright of the Financial Times. Continue reading → The post Bikelash! first appeared on The Bike Show.

The Cyclist Who Went Out in the Cold is comic travel writer Tim Moore's third bicycle-based escapade, and perhaps his craziest. He attempts to ride the length of the Cold War's Iron Curtain, from the north of Finland to the Black Sea coast. It's near enough ten thousand kilometres, a challenge for any cyclist, and not least a slightly unfit middle aged man riding a secondhand East German shopping bike with small wheels and only two gears. Before a live audience at a book event in Monmouth, organised by Rossiters bookshop, Moore explains how he dreamed up the idea and how he got on. Continue reading → The post Riding the Iron Curtain, with Tim Moore first appeared on The Bike Show.

Wrapping up The Bike Show's coverage of this year's Transcontinental Race, Jack Thurston talks to race organiser Mike Hall and women's race winner Emily Chappell. Mike also tells the story of his record-breaking ride in the Tour Divide race earlier in the year and reflects on the growth of bikepacking, as a sport and a pastime. Continue reading → The post Transcontinental Race Wrap-Up first appeared on The Bike Show.

Three days and three nights since setting out from Belgium, riders in the Transcontinental Race are deep in the Swiss Alps, en route for the finish in Turkey. The Transcontinental is one of the world's most extraordinary and compelling bicycle races. Jack Thurston is joined by two time Transcontinental finisher Gareth Baines for an update on this year's race and a discussion of the demands of a 4000 km non-stop bicycle race across Europe. Continue reading → The post Transcontinental Race Update Special first appeared on The Bike Show.

The Transcontinental Race is a test of body, mind and spirit. The format is simple. It’s a single stage race that begins on one side of the European continent (in Belgium) and ends on the other (in Turkey). Riders must plan their own routes and navigate themselves without any support. Jack hears from four riders readying themselves for the 2016 race. But not everyone is ready to race 4000km across Europe, and that's why Transcontinental organisers Mike Hall and Anna Haslock dreamed up a shorter, more accessible format, called the Valleycat. Jack spends a weekend in deepest mid-Wales to find out more. Continue reading → The post Pushing the Limits first appeared on The Bike Show.

The Devon Coast to Coast is a 99 mile long route across England's third largest county, from the Bristol Channel in the north to the English Channel in the south. It is 70 per cent traffic free and passes through the dramatic upland landscape of Dartmoor National Park, following the course of three old railway lines. It's an ideal route for family cycling tour and Jack and Sarah and Adam and Sarah discuss riding the route with a 3 year old, a 2 year old and an 11 month old. In addition Jack talks to some of the key players at Devon County Council who have worked to build the county's enviable network of traffic-free walking and cycling trails. Continue reading → The post All Aboard! Cycle-touring with kids on the Devon Coast to Coast first appeared on The Bike Show.

Acclaimed historian, biographer and lifelong cyclist Graham Robb joins Jack Thurston by phone to talk about his latest book, a comprehensive catalogue of the 2002 cols and passes of the British Isles. They also talk about Robb's earlier books The Discovery of France, The Ancient Paths and why the bicycle is the perfect vehicle for the historian in the field. Continue reading → The post Counting Cols first appeared on The Bike Show.

In the first ever rolling bike test on The Bike Show, Jack Thurston takes the Pinnacle Arkose 2 for a spin around the hills above Abergavenny and Blaenavon. The Pinnacle Arkose 2 is an 'adventure road' bike featuring a 1x10 drivechain, hyraulic disc brakes and 40mm tyres. Continue reading → The post Bike Test: Crossover Fun with the Pinnacle Arkose 2 first appeared on The Bike Show.

Historians often regard the defining events of the 1930s as the Great Depression and the march towards the second world war. Yet the decade also saw something of a consumer boom, at least among well-to-do inhabiting the suburbs of London and the south east. Historian Dr John Law of the University of Westminster joins Jack Thurston to share his research into the a new suburban lifestyles of the interwar years, including the dramatic increase in private, personal mobility though the use of cars, motorcycles and bicycles. They discuss how these new transport technologies shaped London and Londoners and how drivers and cyclists fought for the right to the road. Continue reading → The post Cycling and Modernity in 1930s London first appeared on The Bike Show.

Tim Dawson and Jack Thurston talk about Albert Winstanley, the Lancashire writer, broadcaster and cycletourist who died earlier this year aged 95. Winstanley was a top notch nature writer and had the rare talent to convey in his writing the pleasures of a simple bicycle ride. One of Winstanley's articles features in the first edition of the Bicycle Reader, a new collection of quality writing about riding, co-edited by Jack Thurston and Tim Dawson, and available for Kindle and other e-book readers for the very modest price of £1.53. Continue reading → The post Remembering Albert Winstanley and announcing the Bicycle Reader first appeared on The Bike Show.

Today is the last rest day in the Tour before the race heads into the Pyrenees for tomorrow's frighteningly gruelling mountain stage around the Circle of Death. The rest gave Jack Thurston time to catch up with Lionel Birnie, The Bike Show's favourite cycling journalist. Lionel writes for Cycle Sport Magazine and the Sunday Times. You can follow him on twitter at lioneljbirnie and read his articles in Cycle Sport Magazine and in the Sunday Times. Continue reading → The post Tour de France Rest Day Chit-Chat with Lionel Birnie first appeared on The Bike Show.

With this year's Tour de France just a few days away, Kieron Yates and Jack Thurston talk about the best places to go touring by bicycle in France. They share their ideas on where to go, where to stay and how to get there and back. Continue reading → The post Vous Faites le Tour de France? first appeared on The Bike Show.

Why do some people like to race their bicycles? We discuss the world of amateur bicycle racing with Ian Cleverly, deputy editor of Rouleur magazine and Lydia Boylan (pictured, above) of the Look Mum No Hands! race team and current … Continue reading → The post The Competitive Impulse first appeared on The Bike Show.

The summer season kicks of with an entertaining and borderline nerdy discussion of the past, present and future of the cycling jersey. From Bianchi’s 1950s classic celeste blue to Mapei pushed the dye sublimation process to its limits and divided … Continue reading → The post The Life and Times of the Cycling Jersey first appeared on The Bike Show.

Crusading, anti-doping sports journalist Lionel Birnie of Cycling Weekly gives his views on the latest revelations about professional cycling. You can read the 30,000-word transcript of Paul Kimmage’s interview with Floyd Landis at the NY Velocity blog. Mr NikBagTV presents … Continue reading → The post Shame and Scandal in Professional Cycling first appeared on The Bike Show.

On the day before the completion of the construction phase of London’s new 6,000-seat velodrome on the 2012 Olympic site, we are treated to a sneak peek. Mike Taylor of Hopkins Architects presents the design vision and explains how he … Continue reading → The post Inside the 2012 Olympic Velodrome first appeared on The Bike Show.

Talking bicycle security with author and blogger Rob Ainsley and Anthony Lau, architect and designer of the excellent Cycle Hoop that cheaply converts street furniture into cycle racks. Anthony is also soon to unveil a new car-shaped bicycle storage rack … Continue reading → The post Lock it or lose it first appeared on The Bike Show.

Last Thursday, on what felt like a warm, sunny first day of Spring, I was witness to the immediate aftermath of a collision involving a cyclist and a 32 tonne articulated lorry. It was a truly horrible, chilling sight. The … Continue reading → The post Lorries/HGVs/LGVs killing cyclists: an appeal to London listeners first appeared on The Bike Show.

Joining me in the studio is Graeme Fife, author of the definitive account of Le Tour de France, updated each year. He’s also author of the beautiful Rapha Guide to the Great Road Climbs of the Pyrenees. We discuss this … Continue reading → The post Le Tour Redux first appeared on The Bike Show.

One of the advantages of being off air for a while is more time to get out and about, for instance, a quick trip sous la Manche to watch the 2008 Paris-Roubaix, the Queen of the Classics. Just shy of … Continue reading → The post Off-air antics: L’Enfer du Nord first appeared on The Bike Show.

Resonance FM is moving to new and better studios! This is great news, but it means the station is suspending all live broadcasts until the move is complete (sometime in August). Instead it will be broadcasting repeats from the past … Continue reading → The post Off air for a while… first appeared on The Bike Show.