by Stephen Roe

Previously doing the school run, I’d had one child strapped to me, another holding my hand and a bike in the other hand (we’ve no car). Then I found out we were having another child (which was planned but earlier than we expected) and I researched Dutch bikes. I saw one on eBay put a bid and then sent a picture to my wife, who swore. Anyway the bid won the auction, it arrived, she rode it and had a smile on her face when she came back. 5000 miles later we’ve realized it’s being a lifesaver.

I was a keen cyclist anyway but when Covid hit I was no longer commuting every day and realized I was using the original cargo bike more and more and whilst we loved it, wanted to upgrade to something with a bit more umph. I persuaded Graham Pearce to take up the Cyclescheme as otherwise we wouldn’t have been able to afford one. Graham is a bit of Don and was amazingly generous and helpful as well as incredibly knowledgeable and I bought a Bullitt without riding one, but safe in the description he gave me: “that once ridden I’d never want to not ride one”

1. Sheer Enjoyment [5]
2. Drive my car less [5]
3. Save Money [5]
4. Save Time [5]
5. Save the planet [5]

It feels like entitlement riding a Bullitt by which I mean, it’s a privilege and a joy to be riding something so smooth and enjoyable, whilst at the same time as doing the school run or shopping with the kids in the front and since I’ve had one I’ve made excuses to go further all with the kids on on-board. I chose the non-electric version and live in Yorkshire but still find the range of gears copes with all the hills and valleys around us.

I ride the Bullitt several times a day, we’ve no car so it does the school and child minder drop-offs and pick-ups, shopping trips, kids swimming, trips to the market, doctors, dentists, Covid19 testing everything.

I cycled a lot in my teens and went around Spain from Barcelona to Granada when I was a slip of a lad and could climb mountains, but then discovered Harley Davidson’s in my early twenties and didn’t ride a bike in anger until my offices moved further away and I started commuting by bike in my mid-forties, happily enough I quickly got the bug again

I’d like a f..king massive horn to scare the hell outa some of the lunatic drivers out there

Brexit.

Brexit. (which fell on my 50^th birthday)

I love going out on the Bullitt in the dark, at night with my eldest daughter and we chat away about our days and I share my crazy ideas with her and then buy a nice bottle of claret from M&S and then ride home again and drink it.

Spain.