The Reluctant Cyclist

By Freda Raphael

I love my bikes, I have three and I love my little car. My car used to be an old banger on its last legs, but it had cost me less than £500 and I’d had it three years when that nice Mr Brown offered me £2000 for it in the government scrapage scheme.

What an opportunity. My dear old banger was going to fail its MOT miserably but now, suddenly, with the £2000 I could just afford a lovely new car for the very first time.

It was still a tiny one but I could get my folding bike onto the back seat and so could Gordon, my other half. Gordon is a reluctant cyclist but he’d envied my fold up so he’d bought one too. As long as we cycle away from busy roads and hills he’s happy. 3 years ago not long after I’d bought the lovely new car, I needed to go to Edinburgh. It was the end of summer and I persuaded Gordon to come too with his bike.

Our favourite ride was when we cycled over the Forth road bridge. We cycled along the coast with magnificent views along the Firth of Forth, and then, there were the bridges. The magnificent Forth railway bridge being painted yet again from end to end in beautiful deep red paint, and the Ethereal road bridge, like a cobweb in the sky. It’s a wonderful experience to cycle across a long bridge. The traffic thunders past but you can stop wherever you like and gaze at the view, at the ships in the water.

At the far end we took a little side road that takes you down and down into north Queensferry where you can sit in the sunshine near the water outside the old albert hotel with a well deserved pint and gaze in awe down the length of the old red railway bridge. North Queensferry is also, by the way, where that nice Mr Brown lives and I did hope I might see him walking down to the old slip way or propping up the bar in the albert. I’d have liked to of said thank you for my brilliant little car that enables me and Gordon, my Gordon, not Mr Brown to take our bikes around but he was nowhere to be seen but thank you anyway Mr Brown.