onionbagblog

A lost Saturday afternoon spent drinking coffee, talking bicycles and listening to poetry; half pints of lager shandy at The Greyhound were also involved.

Splendid.

It all started off so innocently – most mistakes do these days – but somehow managed to manifest into a late August afternoon of shandy and scones.

Whoops.

A very kind invite for mid-morning coffee round at the home of Wivenhoe’s esteemed Bike Guru got Saturday off to a good start. Any man who likes to combine cycling with coffee is always worth a chin wag with.

As well as offering a Bike Guru service around Wivenhoe, plus manning the mechanical duties at the very ACE Re-Cycle across in Colchester, Matt – for he is your Bike Guru – is about to set up a cycling ‘n coffee shop down by the old bus station in Sunny Colch.

It’s an idea that is not new to London, and hopefully now is the perfect time to introduce a similar service around these North Essex estuary parts. As well as serving high-class coffee, bike repairs will be available, all within a space that celebrates cycling culture.

This may take the form of showing live coverage of the Grand Tours, or perhaps film evenings to screen some of the classic cycling documentaries.

Keep Colchester Cycling will also be based down at the kiosks in the old bus station, sharing the space with Bike Guru and his coffee n’ cycling cultural exchange.

Meanwhile, back in Wivenhoe and there was a coffee machine to road test. I admit to being more of a Tetley Tea type of chap – perhaps at a push then a rather generous teaspoon of Nescafe if I’m going for that continental look.

It was certainly an education in the Wivenhoe kitchen as I was shown how the machine works, or rather how you work with the machine and tame all that lively hissing and spurting.

The Bike Guru has grand plans, and having listened to them with great interest, I explained my own grand plan for the remainder of the day:

Mr Mule, LIVE and DIRECT Upstairs at The Greyhound.

Oh Lordy.

A brief bicycle fixation back at my base, and soon we were propping up the bar, ordering the half shandies and even shouting a round for the always engaging Pop Genius of this Parish.

Currently trading as Wivenhoe’s Leading Light Entertainer – and who are we to doubt this? – Mr Mule was on fine form as he prepared to entertain the afternoon crowd Upstairs at The Greyhound with verse, song and good humour.

Some parallels were in place from what I had heard from Matt earlier in the day. Upstairs at The Greyhound is a dead space during the day. Much like the old kiosks in Colchester, Mr Mule is keen to explore this and fill it with happy folk.

It was a mixed crowd that had come to see the Leading Entertainer – a local borough Councillor, a young chap dreading the Back to School routine that awaits, Mr Mule’s Mum.

Blimey.

The first half of the performance focussed upon The Hythe. Not at all wanting to claim credit for being the muse for Mr Mule, but having read my recent @Colchester101 piece all about the old industrial heartbeat of the Colne, this sparked an interest in revisiting some of his previous research.

In the unlikely event that you find yourself standing on the platform at the Hythe train station, do take the time to take in the words and ideas that decorate the area. This was a commission for Mr Mule, who undertook months of research and writing.

[note to self: you may have a fancy dan stereo mic mp3 gizmo, but it still sounds slightly ropey, unless you are sitting facing the performer - doh! Apologies...]

These ideas also came together for one Saturday afternoon only, Upstairs at The Greyhound. We heard about the old boys who worked the port, the returning commuters from Liverpool Street and the whores of Hythe Hill.

It’s quite a lively area, I tell you.

Mr Mule was joined by Dr Adrian May, a well-known figure on the folk circuit, and a Hythe resident. His murder ballad was one of the most beautiful pieces of music that I have heard in some time, and somehow it just seemed to make perfect sense on a Saturday afternoon at The Greyhound, just as the estuary rain took issue with the fag end of the summer.

Mr Mule returned for a mandolin version of Home Counties Boy. I have touched on before how this is his personal calling card. Everything that you need to know about Wivenhoe’s (current) Leading Light Entertainer is encapsulated in song and verse.

And then just as the Pop Genius sang:

“and don’t drop your H’s, my mum said to me…”

…I glimpsed his dear old Ma sitting opposite have a twinkle in her eye, a slight foot tappin’ moment and an even a singing of the chorus.

Awww…

Lovely.

Mr Mule of course was oblivious to it all, doing the rock ‘n roll thing. Still, the moment was there, and I’m sure a very proud dear old Ma went home feeling rather happy.

Just like me.

A brief break for beer and scones, care of the wonderful @Seelkram and his burgeoning Well Bread Wivenhoe business, and then we were back for more songs and dance (sort of) from the top turn of the afternoon.

Pound for pound this was poetry and pastry value for money. Where else on a hit and miss North Essex Saturday afternoon are you going mix songs, scones and shandy?

So yeah – quite a random start to the weekend. I blame the seriously strong coffee.

More of the same please, kind Sirs.

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

Round Four of the Halfords Tour Series rolled out along Colchester High Street as the Town Hall clock struck 7 ‘O Clock on Thursday evening. Ten pro-racing teams competed in the town centre series of criterium races that is being stages across eight locations this summer.

The idea is for a circuit race through some of the leading UK town centres, to showcase cycling in areas that have demonstrated a real commitment to cycling as a sustainable form of local transport.

A combination of Colchester’s Cycling Town status and the historic backdrop for the town was the appeal for the race organsiser to stage the Tour in Britain’s oldest recorded town.

The layout of the town centre provided the perfect sprint course for the race organisers. Taking in the High Street, Head Street, St John’s Street and Queen Street, the 1.6km course presented a technical challenge for the riders.

Queen Street in particular provided a relatively steep climb for the sprinting pelaton. The tight turn past the Castle and into the High Street tested the technical road handling skills of the riders..

With the formalities of the riders signing on (it’s a cycling thing…) the countdown was underway for the 7pm roll out. A large local crowd turned out to watch the criterium, having been treated to an all day celebration of cycling in Castle Park throughout the afternoon.

Nothing quite compares you for the thrill of watching fifty pro-riders speed along your local High Street in a tightly packed pelaton. It was true blink and you’ll miss it moment, with roughly seven seconds being the duration it took the riders to pass by.

An early break away of three riders soon became five, as the pack was left chasing the frontrunners for the rest of the race. Team tactics were crucial here. Five of the teams had placed one of their riders in the breakaway, happy for the sprinters to sort it out for themselves come the finish line.

The structure of the Tour Series still meant that there were plenty of points left to be won in the pack. The klaxon sounded the start of various sprint laps with extra team points up for grabs. The final placings also added an overall tally for each team.

Dean Downing of Rapha Condor crossed the line first shortly after 8pm as the overall race winner. Niklas Gustavsson (Team UK Youth) and Jeroen Jansen (Team Raleigh) joined him on the podium for a smile and a kiss from Mayor Chuah and a Roman Centurion.

Speaking after the race with Councillor Nick Barlow, the cabinet member for Culture and Tourism, it became clear why Colchester had been chosen by the race organisers to stage a race:

“They were very impressed with both the town centre layout, and the backdrop that we can present in our town centre. Our plans for the afternoon of cycling at Castle Park were also well received.

Local businesses are in the main very supportive of this event. The local restaurants and bars all seem to be having a fantastic evening.”

You can watch the highlights from the Halfords Tour Series in Colchester on ITV 4 at 8pm on Friday 3rd June.

Full flickr feed over here.

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

Did you catch the high-speed thrill of the Halford’s Tour Series on TV on Wednesday evening? ITV4 showcased the first round of criterium racing with Durham staging a demanding course, as well as something of a celebration of cycling.

It was all rather uplifting, presenting a healthy picture of both professional cycling in the UK, as well as the equally important grass roots support for a more sustainable transport policy around our towns and cities.

And here’s where Colchester comes in – next Thursday (2nd June) sees the Tour road show roll right into the centre of our hometown. We have blogged extensively over the past few weeks about the developments as the build up the Colchester criterium continues. We’ve even secured some hospitality tickets (hurrah!) and hope to catch up with some of the riders on the evening.

Meanwhile, Colchester Borough Council has just announced news of the programme of cycling events that will support the criterium next week. It is an incredibly well thought out and inclusive afternoon and evening of activities:

Castle Park will play host to an exciting afternoon of FREE cycling, sports and Olympic themed activity on Thursday 2 June culminating in a world-class cycling race as the 2011 Halfords Tour Series comes to town.

Head to Hollytrees Meadow, Castle Park to trial the amazing 54 metre Northshore mountain bike track. Bikes and helmets will be provided.

Budding BMX riders can freestyle on the BMX Park or brush up tricks with the skills sessions; bring your own bike!

Drop in on the Halfords Hub Arena where there will be all sorts of entertainment going on throughout the afternoon. Prepare to be amazed by the tricks and flips of Triple World Champion Ben Savage as he tackles the VooDoo Bikes Stunt Rig. There will be an opportunity to improve your cycle skills with some coaching from Ben himself.

Cllr Anne Turrell, Leader of Colchester Borough Council said: We are excited and thrilled to once again host this event. Colchester Borough Council, Essex County Council, the University of Essex, Colchester Institute and Sport England have joined together to deliver this spectacular event free, for the enjoyment of residents and visitors.”

Durham did rather in starting off the Tour Series, showing the way forward in how to simultaneously host and support the series. Here’s hoping that Colchester can deliver, and cycling in our town can become even more firmly established.

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

With less than two weeks to go before the Halfords Tour Series rolls into Colchester, the final preparations are being put into place. High profile riders such as Tour de France stage winner Magnus Backstedt will be racing around our historic town on the evening of 2nd June.

ITV will be televising the race live, creating the perfect opportunity to raise the profile of cycling in Colchester, as well as to experience at first hand the excitement of town centre criterium road racing.

Help is needed however in making sure that the event runs smoothly. The race organisers are keen to involve as many local Colchester folk as possible. Stewards in particular are currently required:

“We are still in need of more volunteer stewards to support the Halfords Tour Series cycling event in Colchester on 2nd June. Volunteers are needed for a briefing at 13.30pm and then from 2pm until 9pm. Volunteers will work directly under the control of Sweet Spot, the race organisers, and will man the circuit for and around the race.

Please do consider helping with this. It will be great fun and you’ll be supporting a fantastic cycling event in Colchester! Please contact acheverst@ntlworld.com if you can help.”

Meanwhile the race map for Colchester has just been released. Taking the form of a number of circuits with high paced sprints around our historic town, the Tour Series will take in the High Street, Head Street, St John’s Street and then back up along Queen Street.

Here at Keep Colchester Cycling and we know of the perfect vantage point in which to watch the race, right from the creative hub in the cultural quarter.

Chapeau!

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

We are keen here at Keep Colchester Cycling to open up our blog to the many local partners that we are working with as part of our bike pool project. Playing an important part of this collaboration is Re-cycle – the bicycle aid for Africa organisation.

Based just past Rollerworld along Moorside in Colchester, this local group is genuinely changing lives in Africa. Re-cycle is also essential to our vision of promoting cycling in Colchester, by very kindly donating our fleet of hire bikes.

I spent a very engaging Tuesday afternoon at the Re-cycle HQ to find out more about the wider macro aims of the organisation, as well as how the work plays a role in the micro local economy. It is very much this meeting of localism and globalism that attracted Keep Colchester Cycling to forming a working relationship with Re-cycle.

Put simply, the aims of the organisation is to:

“Collect second-hand bicycles and ship them to Africa. Our partners distribute bikes and teach riders the skills to repair and maintain them.”

Never underestimate the genuine life-changing experience of pedal power. We may moan here in Colchester when North Hill becomes congested, but it is not a life and death matter. Liberating locals through cycling in an African village can be the catalyst for genuine social change.

It is by pure good fortune that Colchester has Re-cycle based in our own backyard. This came about through a connection with the University when Re-cycle was first established over a decade ago.

With the majority of the 37,000 or so bikes that have been sent to Africa so far coming from Colchester, Re-cycle is keen to offer some form of support back to the thriving cycling community in Colchester.

The downstairs workspace at Moorside is made up of the 1,000′s of bikes that are currently awaiting shipment; take a step upstairs and you will find the Re-cycle workshop and sales floor.

It resembles a more mainstream bike shop, although the level of service and prices are definitely unique in cycling circles. Each bike that is donated is lovingly restored, with a dedicated team of local mechanics, fronted by Colchester Bike Guru Matt.

As Matt explains in the audioboo below, bicycles are restored and sold in the workshop as part of a social enterprise project to help local families on a low income. Prices are incredibly competitive and well below the second-hand bike market value.

It is this circular approach to supporting cycling, sustainability and working at a local and global level that is so appealing at Re-cycle. It can cost around £10 just to physically ship a single bike out to Africa. The small amount of profit made in selling on the higher end bikes back to Colchester folk covers this cost.

I continued my tour, and wandered around the upstairs premises. A man can never own enough bikes has long since been my mantra, and I made a mental note to return to Re-cycle come the next pay day.

Back downstairs in the main studio and it was tempting to calculate the Bikes per Square Inch measurement. Space is vital, and every single bit of the workshop is crammed full of bikes that are ready for shipment.

I needed to find out more about how the process of an abandoned bike in North Essex then somehow finds itself being shipped to Africa to transform lives in a very different continent and culture.

Re-cycle Manager Derek very kindly agreed for a chat, and helpfully explained the process of how a Colchester warehouse at the back of Rollerworld is enabling better transport solutions for people across Africa.

We also touched on Keep Colchester Cycling, and the Re-cycle involvement in promoting cycling back here in our hometown. A fleet of around a dozen bicycles will be provided and serviced by Re-cycle. We are working with a number of local artists to transform the frames and present a unique paint job.

There is uncertainty amongst our various partners on this project as to where this project will take us. It is this very same sense of excitement and experimentation that has led to a Colchester organisation shipping some 37,000 abandoned bikes across continents for well over a decade now.

The physical maintenance and opportunities that a bike presents us with enable this way of working. It may be a long way from Namibia to North Hill, but Colchester is certainly putting itself on the global cycling map with Re-cycle.

You can support Re-cycle by simply donating a bike, or even buying one of the lovingly restored models that are for sale. Any bike is accepted as a donation – if it is beyond the point of repair then the parts will be used as spares. Hybrids, road bikes, MTB’s, BMX’s, children’s bikes – all are for sale in the workshop.

Re-cycle is open Tuesday – Friday 9-5, and 9-1 on a Saturday. Head just past Rollerworld, and you will soon see the workshop.

Published as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

There is sense of symmetry in the latest advice being given to Colchester commuters who want to avoid the car congestion that is increasingly taking over our town: Get on yer bike.

It may have been a phrase born out of Chingford (and quite possibly with rather strong political overtones…) but the mantra of pedal power as the solution to many modern day woes is something that we are rather in tune with here at Keep Colchester Cycling.

Essex County Council is encouraging residents to cycle to work, if they live within a three-mile radius of their site location. This solution is not being put forward purely for County Council employees, but also the wider working population within the county.

We first heard this message at the Active Travel conference staged recently at Essex University. Representing the local authority, Harvey Panrucker spoke passionately about how the council’s own bike pool scheme has been a huge success.

Plans are now in place to positively promote cycling as a sustainable solution to commuting woes around the county. With unprecedented levels in local authority funding currently being cut, Essex County Council is looking at new approaches to previous problems. Cycling as a solution to saving money from the Highways budget is being considered.

Research suggests that 30% of commuters live within a three-mile radius of their workplace, with only 3% currently commuting via bike. Essex County Council has issued a draft transport strategy, observing:

“Significant increases in cycling in Colchester and Harlow have been achieved through sustained investment in cycle networks and promoting cycling, indicating that there is significant opportunity for growth.”

Here at Keep Colchester Cycling and we firmly believe that the choice is down to the individual. As outlined in the presentation by Harvey at the Active Travel conference, when support and encouragement is offered, most commuters ditch their cars in favour of bicyles.

On yer bike may have worked back in the day (or not…) but the best approach to promoting cycling is to improve the ease of access. This is the fundamental aim of our own Colchester bike pool scheme: put the bikes out there, and let the individual decide if it will work for them.

Keep Chingford Cycling?

Now there’s an idea..

Pubiished as part of the Keep Colchester Cycling project.

As part of the University’s Green Fair being held on campus on Wednesday 4th May, local group Transition Town Wivenhoe is powering up the Revolutionary Pedal Powered Cinema to screen a free film to conclude the day:

“The Lakes at The University of Essex will be transformed into a giant outdoor cinema on 4th May to host a free, UK premier of Home, the internationally acclaimed film from Earth From the Air’s Yann Arthus-Bertrand. The Film will start at 8:30pm.

The event is a collaboration between the grass roots group Transition Town Wivenhoe, Essex University and the Student Union Environmental Committee.”

TTW’s use of pedal power to offer free films around the area is now firmly established. With a Halloween screening of Ghostbusters down at Wivenhoe Quay, and a recent showing of The Incredibles outside The Station pub, the local sustainability group has plenty of expertise in powering up generators with pedals.

The group will also be powering a performance of local films at the Wivenhoe May Fair, as well as hopefully being able to screen a series of of films at the Colchester Free Festival later this summer.

The technology required is really quite simple. Workshops have been staged in the town to try and encourage pedal power as a sustainable form of generating local energy.

The Green Fair itself will run from 10am – 2pm, taking place in Square 5 on campus. We are pleased that our Keep Colchester Cycling partners Re-Cycle will also have a presence on the day.

The University is well served by public transport, but of course the best way to reach Wivenhoe Park is by bicycle. There is ample cycling parking provision on campus. Volunteers to help power the Revolutionary Pedal Powered Cinema will be most welcome.