My Loan Bike Experience

By Theresa Ward

I mainly use my loan bike for travelling to work several times a week. Initially this was to save on fuel. However other reasons have since emerged, such as the feeling of freedom you can get from being on a bike. Of course there are times when cycling in traffic can be a bit daunting as the occasional motorist begrudges you your bit of road-space, but on the whole it’s a fine experience.
Cycling has also improved my fitness. I had not really been on a bike for over 20 years, and was truly shocked by how unfit I had become. Months later I still huff and puff my way up hills, but gradually things are improving, and being asthmatic this is a great boon.
I should add that I could not be more pleased with the bike provided for me by the GoCycle scheme – we are a perfect match. The loan service is a wonderful scheme which has enabled me to muster the motivation I needed to get cycling again – so thank you very much!

By Stephen D

I work fairly long hours and have two small children and am generally knackered by the time they've gone to bed so I was struggling to find time to fit any exercise into my week. While I hadn't ridden a bike for around twenty years, I thought that cycling into and around town a couple of times a week for trips that I was already going to make would be a good way to get started so I joined the cycle scheme.
 
After a slightly wobbly start I soon got used to riding a bike again. I got to talkng about having a bike from the loan scheme to a couple of friends one night last year and they both had bikes but hadn't ridden them in a long time. We hatched a plan to cycle to country pubs on summer evenings that we would otherwise never go to so that's what we did and we're now looking forward to the clocks going back so that we do the same again this year. We are still undecided as to whether we're burning or consuming more calories by doing this but it has to be better than drinking the beer without cycling and it beats sitting at home watching the telly.