Cycling club
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Acycling cluborcycling organisationis a society forcyclists.Clubs tend to be mostly local, and can be general or specialised. They can focus on cycle racing and/or cycling as a means of transport (utility cycling). In theUnited Kingdom,for example, theCyclists' Touring Club,(CTC) is a national cycling association; theTricycleAssociation,TandemClub and the Veterans Time Trial Association, for those over 40, are specialist clubs. Members of specialist or national groups often also belong to local clubs.
Other groups support leisure cyclists or campaign for improved facilities for cyclists. TheLondon Cycling Campaign,Friends of the Earth,and Greenwich Cyclists are examples of campaign groups.
History[edit]
Cycling clubs flourished in 19th century in a time when there were no commercial cars on the market and the principal way of transportation washorse-drawn vehicles,such as thehorse and buggyorhorsecar.Among the oldest is the Bicycle Touring Club, later the Cyclists' Touring Club and todayCycling UK,formed in 1878. The earliest women's cycling club in Australasia, the Atalanta Cycling Club, was established on 18 August 1892.[1]
Local associations[edit]
Activities[edit]
A cycling club's activities vary from one aspect of cycle sport to a range of cycling and social activities. Racing clubs organise competitions for members and others, includingtrack cycling,cyclo-cross,road bicycle racingandtime trials.Most competitive cyclists belong to a club affiliated to one of the national racing associations, such asBritish CyclingandCycling Time Trialsin the UK, and may also organise training through BC or ABCC-qualified coaches. Riders often race in their club's colours.
Cycling clubs may offertouring,weekly club rides (traditionally on Sunday mornings), regular meetings and social events.
Sponsorship[edit]
Some clubs are sponsored by commercial organisations; riders often wear clothing bearing advertising in return for the sponsor's support.
Names[edit]
Many clubs are named after their home town or district. A few clubs are named after the topography of their region, such as the Alpine Bicycle Club of Golden, Colorado. Some have no connection, such as the Acme Wheelers in southWales,Zenith CC inLeicester,Gemini BC in north-westKent.
Some call themselves Road Clubs (examples in Britain includeWarringtonRoad Club,Leicestershire Road ClubandArcher RC). Others use a title such as Coureurs or Velo (for example, Clayton Velo, Yorkshire Velo, Rugby Velo, Thames Velo, VC Elan, VC Londres or Velo Sport Jersey), using non-English names that reflect the origins of cycle-racing in France. Another common title is Wheelers - for example, Huddersfield Star Wheelers. Some club names are formed from multiple words - for example, Echelon Velodynamics Bicycle Club.
Some UK club names have roots in political or social movements. TheNational Clarion Cycling Clubspread socialist ideas by bicycle in the late 1890s and early 1900s. The name remains -BuryClarion,CreweClarion,FenlandClarion, London Clarion, North Cheshire Clarion,NottinghamClarion, etc - but the politics has mostly disappeared. Other names reflect historical religious allegiance, such asManchesterSt Christopher's Catholic Cycling Club) or jobs: RAF CC,NorthumbriaPolice CC, GB Fire Service Road Team, Army Cycling Union. Others evoke the wandering nature of cycling - '34 Nomads,AltrinchamRavens,LewesWanderers,ColchesterRovers - or an aspiration:Norwood Paragon,SheffieldPhoenix,Dulwich Paragon.
The early 21st century has also seen the development of internet-based clubs (e.g.:i-Team.cc,and Team Internet).
National and transnational associations[edit]
Cycling organizationsorcycling associationsare organizations forcyclists,bicycle sportsandbicycle mobility,bicycle touring,advocatingbicycle-friendlinessand thebicycleandcyclingin general. As such, they generally supportsustainable transport.[3]Larger national organizations, may have arisen from older, local cycling clubs.
Activities[edit]
Most associations have the commonality that they aim to promote cycling as an everyday activity, e.g.commuting.When the focus is on a specific aspect of cycling, we can distinguish between:[4]
- Racingorganizations.
- Toursand travel associations.
- Advocacyassociations.
- Educational associations: with an emphasis on e.g.bicycle safety
Mobility vs. sports[edit]
Most organizations lean towards eithercycling as a mobilityor bicycle /BMX racing.The political goals can be quite different, because cycling as a mobility is an everyday issue and pervades questions about environmentalism,transport and sustainability.Sports associations emphasize the event character of cycling and do not usually try to advocate the aspects of bicycle as regular traffic vehicles.
See also[edit]
- Adventure Cycling Association
- Association for the Urban Mobility on Bicycle
- Mobility as a service
- Bicycle-sharing system
- Global Alliance for EcoMobility
- Ixion Bicycle Club(1885)
- League of American Bicyclists
- World Cycling Alliance
External links[edit]
References[edit]
- ^"Atalanta Cycling Club | NZHistory, New Zealand history online".nzhistory.govt.nz.Retrieved2020-08-18.
- ^Donovan, Henry."Chicago Eagle".Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections.Retrieved1 July2015.
- ^"About Us".World Cycling Alliance.12 February 2018.Retrieved2019-06-26.
In 2015, theUnited Nationsestablished 17Sustainable Development Goals.Bicycling helps meet nearly every one of them. Bicycling is a cost-effective, quick-to-implement, versatile and contemporary solution that helps individuals, families, communities, nations, and the planet.
- ^"Why Join a Cycling Association?".Bikemunk.2017-11-02.Retrieved2019-06-26.