The Big Bike Revival in Scotland gets Karri’s family cycling together for the first time

Having recently moved to the UK, Karri and her family were delighted to settle down in the surroundings of Linlithgow in West Lothian. Karri’s two daughters, Josie (8) and Bea (6), had never been able to cycle in other places they had lived. 

The Big Bike Revival gave Karri and her family the opportunity to get cycling again.

The Linlithgow Community Development Trust (LCDT) ran Big Bike Revival events over the summer of 2017 and the community organisation formed by the residents was keen to encourage more people in the local area to get cycling.Their events promoted cycling as a healthier and more environmentally friendly transport option, and included stalls with free bicycle maintenance workshops, route explorer sessions and free cycle skills.

I could show my daughters that grown ups ride, instead of standing at the side of the street just watching them. 

Karri

It was local cycle trainer Simon Fagan who told Karri and her family about the Big Bike Revival. “He explained what it was and how he was doing skills sessions,” said Karri. “So I rocked down there as well, all three of us on our bikes so I could show my daughters that grown ups ride, instead of standing at the side of the street just watching them.”

Karri’s eldest daughter, Josie, was cycling by the end of the Big Bike Revival session. “Something just clicked for her,” Karri said. “After the event that day she said ‘Mum, Mum, I used to be so nervous and scared to get on my bike, now I just feel happy, excited and I know how to do this!’”

Karri was delighted by both of her daughters’ new-found enthusiasm after the Big Bike Revival, remarking that their lack of confidence had always scuppered the family’s cycling before. Karri explained, “I think when you’re learning a new skill everybody gets and doesn’t get different parts of it. But my kids responded to Simon’s confidence session and that was the day that Josie really clicked. To have Josie say ‘I feel really confident on my bike now’, I was like ‘YES!’”

The Big Bike Revival’s way of making cycling accessible for her kids has enabled her family to make a lasting change.  “We really loved the event and the ongoing communications,” she said. “One of the things as a parent, I get really busy and the messages, like ‘ride your bike’ or ‘take the kids out’ – the publicity around the Big Bike Revival reminded me that we had that goal and we wanted to do that!”

The family’s legacy from the Big Bike Revival will continue as they set goals for planning cycling trips into their schedule. “We have plans to go up and down the canal in Linlithgow for family trips,” said Karri. “The kids are definitely still riding their bikes and they are still excited.”

And what about Karri? “I got a bike, I haven’t had a bike for years. I got it because it’s not that far to the centre of town, and I really want to cycle there. There is a massive, massive hill beside us so that’s a barrier, but the flipside is that if I walk up it I can get off my bike and walk up it, too. I am in line with that goal to get me to the top of the hill!”