Several years ago, the National Children’s Bureau published research that revealed that on average, boys cycle 138 miles a year and girls only 24 miles. This still rings true.
Darlington’s project began with the production of a documentary called Beauty and the Bike, chronicling a trip made by a group of teenage girls to Bremen in Germany, where they met their cycling-loving peers and found out about the joys of the open road. It all sounds slightly twee, but addresses the important issue that girls tend to get to a certain age and it’s no longer the done thing to get about by bike.
Another offender is the site Bike Belles, run by the otherwise excellent charity Sustrans, which encourages women of all ages to take up cycling. One helpful section dedicated to beauty tips provides such gems as: “Use waterproof mascara when it’s raining on your bike, and take a powder compact for a quick refresher on arrival.” Admittedly, I write as someone who occasionally arrives at the office sporting a minor oil slick on my face, but I sincerely doubt that women are so image conscious that this is what is stopping them. As many a female cyclist will confirm, it is more hassle than it’s worth looking attractive while travelling by bike.
Enjoy a day out at the nation’s favourite cycle show this year at Earls Court 1 London. See all the latest bike launches before they hit the high street, get advice and order your new bike direct from the stands, try out the latest bikes on various test tracks and see cycling celebrities, watch high profile BMX riders on the street course plus much, much
The Cycle Show 2009 is open for four days this October. Tickets will be available to book online soon.
Thursday 8th October – Trade and press preview day only (not open to the public)
Friday 9th to Sunday 11th October – Open to the public
Whether you’re a commuter, you ride on dirt, track or road, or simply enjoy a bike ride at the weekend with your family and friends, the Cycle Show is not to be missed
The Cycle Show 2009 is being held at..
Earls Court Exhibition Centre
Warwick Road
London
SW5 9TA
How to Get There
BY BIKE
There are several good cycle routes to Earls Court 1 from the City and the West End visit journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk for different routes. Park your bike at the show, the Brompton bike park is situated in the Brompton entrance to the show.
BY TUBE
The nearest tube stops are Earls Court 1 and West Brompton.
For Earls Court One, exit at the Warwick Road exit of Earls Court station and the entrance to the venue is directly opposite the station.
Earls Court station is on the District and Piccadilly lines.
West Brompton Station is on the District line on the Wimbledon Branch from Earls Court.
BY TRAIN
London Overground and Southern trains run direct services to West Brompton station for Earls Court and Kensington Olympia. Direct services run from Clapham Junction, Gatwick Airport, East Croydon, Watford Junction and Willesden Junction.
BY BUS
Earls Court 1 London is served by the routes 74, 328, C1 and C3 to Warwick Road and the 190 to Lillie Road.
BY CAR
From M1/A1/M11/A10 take the A406 westbound to A4. Continue on A4 over Hammersmith Flyover until A4 becomes West Cromwell Road and follow signs.
From M4/A4 follow directions as above.
CAR PARKING
Visitors wishing to travel by car are advised to pre-book a parking space at www.eco.co.uk or call the booking line on 0871 871 9809 or for international callers 0044 207 598 2515 (open 0900 – 1700 Monday to Friday)
BY AIR
Earls Court is easy to access from the three main London airports: Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted.
From Gatwick, take the Silverlink train direct to West Brompton. West Brompton is on the District underground line (green), which is one stop from Earls Court. The journey takes app. 35 minutes.
From Heathrow, take the Piccadilly line (blue) straight to Earls Court. The journey takes app. 35 minutes.
From Stansted, take the Stansted Express train to Liverpool Street. Take the Circle line (yellow) to Gloucester Road then change onto the District line to Earls Court. The journey takes app. 1 hour 10 minutes.
| The Cycle Show is open from 8 - 11 October 2009 |
|||
| Thursday 8th October | 10:00am - 7:00pm | Trade and Press only | |
| Friday 9th October | 10:00am - 6:00pm | Open to the Public | |
| Saturday 10th October | 10:00am - 6:00pm | Open to the Public | |
| Sunday 11th October | 10:00am - 5:00pm | Open to the Public | |
The Commuter Test Track is designed specifically with the commuter in mind and gives you the opportunity to try the latest commuter and range of folding bikes.
If you are thinking of cashing in and turning to commuting to work by bike for the first time, you can also get valuable advice and a taster for the different types of bikes available
Retail Zone
Check out, try out and buy the latest cycling clothing in The Retail Zone. This area caters for every cyclists desire and contains leading brands that will be showcased on the fashion stage within the Cycle Arena on a daily basis. You will be spoilt for choice so why not leave this years show with the coolest, high performance cycling clothing!
Bike Park
All visitors are welcome to cycle to the show and use the free secure bike park to store your bike while you enjoy the show. The bike park will be manned throughout the show and a ticketing system used to sign your bike in and out.
Street course
See the UK’s top BMX rider’s gun it in an outrageous aerial stunt display.
These guys simply don’t understand the word impossible!
For those of you with a true spirit for adventure why not put your off-road skills to the test on the Mountain Bike Experience?
This area is specially built using a combination of dirt and north shore structures and gives you the chance to experience the latest innovations and your dream bike first hand.
Muddy Fox is a bicycle manufacturer from Basildon, Essex, specialising in mountain bikes and other flatbar bicycles. The company produced BMX bikes in the 1980s before the slump later on forced them to switch to mountain bike production, which they had stuck to since. The company have been a brand of Universal Cycles since 2001and also produces Silver Fox to sell to bigbox retailers such as BG Stores.
Universal Cycles was founded in the late 70’s and soon established themselves as one of the market leaders within the industry. Currently Universal Cycles are one of the largest suppliers to the UK market and have always prided themselves on offering affordable quality cycling to everyone.
Universal Cycles vast array of exclusive licensed products is second to none, as Universal Cycles boast a number of internationally recognised brand names, all available at competitive prices.
At Universal Cycles, pride themselves on being able to offer cycles at affordable prices so everyone can enjoy the delights of cycling. Since being established, Universal Cycles have increased our range to offer one of the largest selections available, also introducing the brand Silverfox during the nineties, which has gone from strength to offering good quality cycles, with higher quality component parts but still at competitive prices.
Bike Week is the UK’s largest mass participation cycling event and provides an annual opportunity to promote cycling as a source of fitness and fun, not to mention an alternative form of transport. This year, Bike Week 2009 is encouraging everyone to ‘get more out of life’- by getting on your bikes, exploring your local community and finding out just how convenient cycling is for all those short trips we make each day. And in the meantime – why not make every week a Bike Week and get out and about on your bike! Celebrities who have now pledged their support for Bike Week include Vivienne Westwood, Wayne Hemingway, Damian Lewis and Andrew Lincoln. They tell us why they love cycling so much: Wayne Hemingway, Red or Dead co-founder supports Bike Week and all it stands for: “The best thing about cycling is everything- fresh air, exercise, fun, no environmental impact and importantly for thrifty types like me ..bloomin’ cheap”” Giles Deacon – Brit fashion guru says “The best thing about cycling is exercise, seeing things I wouldn’t see from a car…. ” Vivienne Westwood – “Cycling is so convenient. Because I never ride very fast, I don’t need a change of clothes – if necessary I walk up the
