Having just written the news section  (I always do that as a bit of mental limbering up) I very rarely have anything in mind before I start, which you may have noticed!

I was quite inspired by reading the blog, twitter and website of James Barthorpe, who is almost halfway through his trans-world cycle ride of 18,000 miles, and by doing so he hopes to raise £1.8 million for research into Parkinson’s Disease.

Now I wouldn’t expect any of you to set out on a similar adventure just yet, but I would be very pleased if you might consider broadening your cycling horizons. This might be as easy as actually doing some cycling, or seeing if you can ride all the way around the island on Route 1. It’s not that far – it’s around 40 miles – or why not do a reasonable length charity ride? The Anthony Nolan has different mileages, so pick something difficult but still achievable. There isn’t really any need to turn it into a race, just ride steadily and enjoy the achievement.

It’s funny, but before most charity events, we normally get a crop of forlorn heroes who tell us that they are doing ‘the race’ tomorrow. They usually want a repair at the last minute. I don’t know if we’re supposed to be impressed that they will face old ladies, small children and often pregnant women, in a wheel to wheel combat the following day.

For those of you who consider that the world could possibly be your oyster, I’ll dig out a piece that I wrote for Bicycle magazine some time ago. In the article I talk about what bike is best, the spares and clothing you’ll need and what there is available in the way of lightweight camping equipment.

Braking(hard) News

Cyclists’ Touring Club hits all time membership record
In what must be seen as an indicator of the popularity of leisure cycling, is the news that the Cyclists’ Touring Club has just netted a record membership of 60,776 members. The most amazing aspect is that the last time that the figures hit an all time high was 110 years ago in 1899. These days the CTC is a very professional body offering a number of diverse services to its members, as well as campaigning for the rights of all cyclists.

James Barthorpe the Trans-World Cyclist reaches Australia
You might remember my blog of some weeks ago when I wrote about James Barthorpe, a 31 year old from the West Country who was setting out to break the record for a trans world cycle ride. He left London on March 29, and hopes to be back in the capital on August 27. If he does so, he will have smashed Mark Beaumont’s record, set in February last year by about a month. Beaumont took 194 days and 17 hours to complete his 18,000 mile odyssey while Barthorpe hopes to be back in 150 days.

Here’s the story so far; after a stomach bug in India and an attempted motorised mugging in Iran, James is now in the relative safety of Australia. Yesterday, 7 June, saw the longest day as yet at 147 miles. Today, at 22.15 hours as I write, he has just passed Dundas on Highway 1 and is about 25 miles away from Norseman. 72 days gone, 9012 miles cycled, 97 days to go.

Follow his progress on www.globecycle.com or direct from his GPS on www.whereintheworld isjames.com.

And Finally
Don’t forget that it’s National Cycling Week until 21 June. What are you, your company, your club, your neighbourhood or your society going to do to encourage cycling this week?