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Bike Week BlogCycle Steps – from beginner to pro....Nearly!6th June 2012With an empty playground as her training ground Rachel and her instructor started on the Do’s and Don’t of cycling. With one lesson under her belt Rachel was as nervous as she was excited. We catch up with her here to find out how she got on: BW: What were the most useful tips you got during your lesson?  Rachel: It sounds simple but ‘look in the direction you want the bike to go’ and probably the most useful, ‘hold the brakes when you get on the bike’ – it’s amazing how useful this was! It sounds so simple yet anytime I made it as far as balancing on a bike before I was always too busy checking around me to make sure there was no people, animals or objects I could hurt or run in to! BW: How did you manage the gears? Rachel: Confusing and pretty painful on my hands! I think I may have been clinging to the gears/brakes/handlebars for dear life. I definitely got to grips with them eventually though. My hands and arms were cramped by this part of my lesson! BW: What was the most difficult part of the lesson? Rachel: Halfway through the lesson my instructor thought I was ready to move from the playground to the park! This was a little terrifying. Also, trying to cycle forward in a straight line while looking behind to count the number of fingers the  instructor was holding up was tough. BW: What was your proudest moment of the lesson? Rachel: Having the confidence to take my hands off the handlebars and learn how to signal. The challenge became two fold when I had to start looking in the direction I was signalling but continue to control the moving bike with only one hand!! BW: Any casualties? Rachel: Thankfully not. Looking in the same direction when signalling did result in my steering off the path and nearly falling off the bike once or twice though. BW: Are you surprised at the amount of progress you made in your first lesson? Rachel: Completely – by the end of the two hours I was able to hold my signals for three seconds while keeping control of the bike. It was exciting and something I had not expected to master after one lesson. Rachel completed level one of cycle training in her first lesson. As nerves start to subside Rachel’s confidence has slowly started to show. Keep tuned in to find out how she handles the roads! |
