On 3rd June my fellow NHS GP Andy Douglas suggested we celebrate the end of Move More Month 2020 #MMM2020 & emulate the #MoveMoreSchoolsCycleTour by visiting all 80 GP Practices on 29th June.
And then he mentioned the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals. And our social prescribing hubs… But not to worry, he’d do half and I could do the other half on my e-bike, it would all be fine. 170km between the pair of us, we had all day to do it. Across the whole of Sheffield, all in a day!
Well we did it! This blog is the story of my preparations for how (&why??) I rode 52 miles on a wet & cold day across North Sheffield as a celebration of active travel in the city
Highlights of the Tour
Throughout the pandemic lockdown I’ve been working as usual at my practice https://www.wincobankmedicalcentre.co.uk/
Physical Activity has become an integral part of my life and you can read about my personal journey here http://www.brendaninglefoundation.org.uk/?p=366
As a GP I know stories are important. It’s how we make sense of the world around us, how we relate to others & how we create an identity and develop our own autonomy. It’s how we cope with illness & how we find a way to keep ourselves healthy.
Sculpture on Holme Lane, Hillsborough
I could instantly see from Andy’s idea #NHSTourDeSheffield was a unique opportunity to capture how Health Care Professionals- HCPs – across the city are doing just that right now
Andy’s half the tour is brilliantly captured here- https://twitter.com/andydouglasgp/status/1277962270572556288?s=21
See the thing is, unlike Andy I’ve NEVER ridden 50 miles in a day. E-bike or not it’s a long time in the saddle! Luckily my kids have really taken to their bikes since the roads became quieter. They have been helping with my training
William above A57 heading back towards Sheffield
I’ve gone running after work in nearby Woolley Woods
Spectacular bluebells in Woolley Woods, Wincobank April 2020
And when restrictions allowed, out with friends
Hot weather in May! Crookes run with Claire Lou & Saffron
Cycling with Beck Rick and Margo up the Transpennine trail to Thurgoland
As well as some skipping when time was short
With Rob Pearson of Ingle Runners, we love the Skipping Sikh!
Out on Strines Moor the day before the ride. Claire & Lou were completing their #ThisGirlRuns 200km in June challenge & it seemed rude not to join them!
The big day arrives!
Well actually I realised there was NO WAY I would get a good chance to talk to all the people I wanted on the day itself so… I cheated (a bit, sorry Andy!)
My colleagues Dr Gail Coskery & Dr Anne Noble from Wincobank Medical Centre, keen commuters by bike
Dr Helen Twohig & Dr Liz Callingham of Dykes Hall MC. They use an e-cargo bike for home visiting & to get to the satellite hub at Deer Park Rd Stannington
Fellow E-biker Dr Aarti Bansal, founder of Greener Practice on Midsummers Day
Dr Girish Vaidya Consultant Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist with his e-bike / car replacement
All these amazing clinicians told me their stories. They were passionate about active travel & just wanted to do their little bit. Why? For personal health, the climate emergency, for practicality. Despite the contribution each was making, I heard how they never felt it was enough & it seemed others were always doing more.
I pointed out all these efforts actually add up to quite a lot.
THE BIG DAY REALLY Comes!
29th June arrives and so does the rain- after all the amazing sunshine we’d had before!
View from Hagg Hill allotments, 7.30am
Andy has created a route for me
https://www.komoot.com/tour/197417081?ref=itd
Despite an early start I was running late by 9am, in Hillsborough avoiding tram tracks I bumped into Rosemary & Tom heading to the launch of Sheffield Cycling for All e-trike loan
Rosemary and Tom Sheffield Cycling for All
http://sheffieldcycling4all.org
Then it was off up the Upper Don Trail towards Oughtibridge. I shared this section of the ride with Paul on his folding e-bike. Paul is a Trustee of the UDT and has a background as a mental health worker. He has come to cycling later in life, he says to keep up with his wife. He celebrates his 70th birthday soon but certainly looks very well for his years. Must be the biking!
Beeley Wood with Paul from UDT this section of the Upper Don Trail has a smooth track & is a very pleasant ride.
Transpennine trail at Wharncliffe Side
From Oughtibridge I went it alone up the Transpennine trail to Stocksbridge which was a trickier surface, but quite beautiful in the rain.
A bit of a detour, looking back to town from the top of Jawbone Hill- Sheffield where have you gone?
I got back to Hillsborough for a cuppa & snack with the marvellous Karen Sherwood owner of Cupola Art Gallery, who kindly acted as a biking station. A short break and I was off into familiar territory in North Sheffield
The pressure was on now to be on schedule to meet Andy & staff at the Northern General at 2.30pm. I didn’t get to talk to anyone on this segment.
It’s a pity as I recalled all the amazing contributions HCPs in this area have made. Shout out to Lesley Holmes Practice Manager at Southey Green for supporting Concord Park Run, Dr Kate Donaghy at Buchanan Rd Surgery for supporting Manor Fields Parkrun. Not forgetting Page Hall MC who are keen bike users, Pitsmoor Surgery who have a practice e-bike & loads of cycle commuters! I also didn’t get a chance to visit SOAR Community who are involved with a huge number of local initiatives for improving physical activity- next time!
I also got a wave from one of the Ingle Ladies Runners- bad weather never stops them putting trainers on- thanks Emma you gave me a boost when I needed it!
But I did make it to NGH on time to meet Andy and the others- phew!
We had a fantastic reception from STH staff who share an interest in promoting physical activity & are keen to discuss active travel. Again we heard stories of individuals doing what they could. There were frustrations with infrastructure & a desire for high level support to enable more colleagues to benefit from engaging in active travel.
I was very glad of some company heading to our final destination of Western Park via the remaining practices. Dr Honey Smith cycled with me. We talked about the Greener Practice initiative some more & I heard of the good work being done to enable practices to make small changes to reduce environmental impact. Active travel has a large part to play in reducing carbon footprint & pollution too.
With Dr Honey Smith, Greener Practice
My Strava stats for the day
In Weston Park and I am done!
My actual route- It’s a dragon isn’t it? #StravaArt
So that is the end. Well done for making it this far with me! An epic read seems appropriate for 52 miles around North Sheffield in the rain. It’s been a great experience & I am proud of what we achieved on the first #NHSTourDeSheffield.
Thanks Andy for organising the route & the idea- honestly I did enjoy it!
Many thanks to everyone who supported me along the way, before during and after, especially my partner Chris Jones. Also my kids Joseph William & Robert for the practice rides & experimenting with hone made energy bar recipes (no surprises the chocolate ones were best!)
What have I learnt? Personally I have had to be disciplined & incorporate extra exercise into my schedule. I learnt a lot on the day about how to fuel & the importance of hydration, even in the rain! Also next time I will book the next day off work to recover!
Regarding active travel I have visited parts of the city I wouldn’t usually see, Sheffield has so many green spaces & I found several new ones on the ride.
I learnt there is plenty of interest in cycling in Sheffield but there are obstacles to people adopting it. For an e-bike these include cost & safe storage. There are real safety concerns & people need support & safe road spaces to integrate active travel in their lives.
Thanks for reading, if you’d like to know more about active travel in Sheffield you can visit
https://cyclewalkscrmap.sheffieldcityregion.org.uk/
My favourite spot on the commute to Wincobank, Ball St Bridge Kelham Island