It spring – time for growing!
So we’re putting the call out for some new blogging ‘blood’ to join our teams in Cycling in Auckland, Cycling in Wellington and Cycling in Christchurch!
This is your opportunity to have people around the world hanging off your every word, waiting with baited breath for your latest observation or insightful idea, become a household name (well certain households anyway), join the growing fraternity of self-made bicycle blogging celebrities.
Alternatively, if fame is not your thing, come up with an alter ego … a pen name, a ‘nom de plume’. The freedom of having an a.k.a is fabulous!
The process of blogging is very simple (just like writing and email really) so you don’t need any technical knowledge, just the impulse to share your ideas and thoughts. So, if I’ve wetted your appetite and you would like to find out more, just drop me a line at unity.finesmith@gmail.com or contact me on twitter, facebook or through the contact pages on any of the websites.
Hi – My husband and I have been living in Christchurch for less than a year now and we both love cycling and think its great that there is a bit of push towards moving Christchurch to be a cycle friendly city. I wish to ask a question, if you are like me, new to the city, new to living in a big city after living in two very small towns for 6 years… How does one go about learning to cycle safe around Christchurch? I always wondered if there was a Learn to Cycle in Christchurch course run by another cyclist enthusiastic person. It makes sense to me that if we want to push towards having a cycle friendly city to have other cyclist people like myself, educated in how to negotiate the complex intersections, multiply lanes. Even if it was not so much a course, but other riders wanting to share their knowledge, things they have learnt that might help others to learn in a more safe manner. Learning little tricks, hints and suggestions from others is a great way to meet up with other fellow bike people. The old saying Learning by Doing is great, but comes at a certain risk if you are like me and are not armed with a stack of knowledge of all the road changes going on in Christchurch and the rather complex road system Christchurch already has in place.. Anyone have any ideas? Would be grateful for feedback. Thank you
Hi Graci , welcome to the city . I am not sure if the following tips are 100% legal or best practice but I have found them useful . Firstly it helps to plan your journey in advance , Google maps is very helpful . Particularly if you are cycling with someone else, ensure each one knows the route and don’t change it mid ride without getting off and talking about it . Plan changes mid-road are a recipe for a split second bad decision . If in doubt at an intersection get off and use the pedestrian lights . Do this until you get more confidence , it will come . Tell absolutely everyone exactly what you intend to do using hand signals , check they have seen you , and then do it . Be careful at round-abouts , a car with an indicator may have just forgotten to turn it off from last time . Proceed when you are sure it is safe . You will get to know which roads and intersections to avoid and which ones you enjoy riding on . It doesn’t take long and is all part of the adventure . Don’t be afraid to plan a longer route if it means you are confident that it will be easier , a few extra meters here and there doesn’t take much more time . Start low and go slow if it is all new for you , what I mean by that is go around the block near home a few times , and then venture a bit further each time . Before you know it you will be an expert . Remember that 99.9% of drivers don’t want to do you harm and most of those will be downright courteous . Those that are angry with you have other issues to deal with . Smile and carry on . The 0.1% of drivers that I haven’t mentioned can be a bit scary , but then remember that other drivers and pedestrians are also at risk from these . Yes a car can do a lot of damage, but the odds are in your favour and think of the enjoyment that you are going to get from this and what drivers are missing out on . Hope this helps . The CCC website has useful cycling tips , as does Bikewise .
I second Robert’s advice about being sure of routes. A good route makes a world of difference. Test riding a potential commute route during the weekend when there is less traffic is a good idea. The grid layout of Christchurch can be helpful as well. If one road is busy with lots of parked cars it is often possible to find a parallel route a block or two over that is much quieter. Also…
Hook turns are a good way to perform a right turn stress-free right turn. There is a post on here about them.
Be very wary of bus and truck blind zones. I never filter past unless I am 100% sure I will clear the bus or truck before it starts moving.
Avoid the door zone. Aim for routes with fewer parked cars and where you feel comfortable riding wide enough around parked cars not to be hit by a carelessly opened door. And if for some reason you do have to ride in the door zone, do so very slowly so you can check parked cars for anybody who could open a door and stop quickly if required.
Happy riding!
Welcome aboard Graci! My fellow commenters have provided some great advice. It does seem to be a blind-spot in Chch at present that there isn’t readily available cycle training/guidance for adults, be it via Council or some other keen souls; obviously something to work on (you’re not the first to ask here about that).
In the meantime, I have tried to start putting together some of the relevant info we have in the one place – under the “Information” menu at the top of this website you’ll find a page on “How to Ride your Bike”. I’m putting info there on cycle skills, commuting tips, where to ride, and so on. Feedback please!
I have on the to-do list a number of related articles to roll out as time allows (including some of the tips mentioned above); also want to provide some info about some of the main cycling routes around town, where they are and what they look like. So watch this space!