For Sheila, cycling has always been a part of her everyday life. Since retirement she has completed many long-distance tours, discovered the joys of electric bikes and begun volunteering as a trishaw pilot for Cycling Without Age (CWA) taking elderly people out for cycle rides in her local community. 

Sheila Ruckley said…

“I have enjoyed cycling for as long as I can remember but have always been in the ‘slow is more’ school of cycling. 

“A bike is part of my everyday life as I am lucky enough to live in an area with good cycle tracks and access to quiet roads. 

“There’s a place for competitive cycling and putting every ride on Strava – but that is not for me. I like to use my bike to do my shopping; going to see friends and taking in all that our beautiful country has to offer. 

“Since I retired, I’ve also been lucky enough to do long distance touring on my Surly Long Haul Trucker, covering around 10,000 miles in the USA on several trips with other women cyclists, and on my own in Europe, including cycling Brittany to Budapest and, more recently, Brittany to the Costa Blanca. 

I thoroughly recommend anyone to give it a go – even two or three days away on a bike, covering maybe 40 or 50 miles a day and taking time to explore and look at things will definitely change your life. Life is not a race!

Sheila Ruckley

“I thoroughly recommend anyone to give it a go – even two or three days away on a bike, covering maybe 40 or 50 miles a day and taking time to explore and look at things will definitely change your life. Life is not a race!

“Recently two things have changed in my cycling life. First of all, I now have a compact electric bike that has become my everyday workhorse – a Kalkhoff Sahel 3. I was sceptical about electric bikes. Now I am a convert. If you are new to cycling and live in a hilly area my message would be – go electric.

“Secondly, I got involved in a local chapter of a world-wide social enterprise called Cycling Without Age and have qualified as a ‘pilot’, taking elderly people out for rides in specially built trishaws. 

“Sadly, the coronavirus pandemic has put a halt to this activity but all of us involved in it look forward to a time when we can once again be part of this fantastic movement. 

“Nothing beats seeing the look on someone’s face once you have taken them out for a ride in a CWA trishaw. And it really is ‘Slow is More’. We cycle at a brisk walking pace and stop to look at the flowers.”