There really isn't anything hugely original about a massed bicycle rally, it has happened before, in fact, Haringey, Camden and Enfield all had bicycle festivals last year, The Hovis Freewheel, which commandeers 14km of Central London roads, is now an annual event and Critical Mass, a semi-impromptu mass bicycle ride, takes off from Waterloo Bridge every month. No, the only original thing here is that this is the first time massed bicycles have taken to the streets of car-crazed Barnet.
It seemed so easy, when we saw Chris Murran on channel 4's 'The Woman Who Stopped Cars' leading a troop of cycles down a car-less Marlow High Street, it looked great, wonderful, inspiring, just the sort of thing we needed here, but above all , it looked easy, simple. Well, simple it may have been but it wasn't that easy, there was a lot of hard work to come.
First, I mentioned it to Robert Newton, my colleague in North Finchley Agenda 21, and he was immediately enthusiastic. We hatched a plan to combine the bike rally with an environment fayre that was scheduled to take place in June at North Finchley artsdepot as part of the 'Love London' series of festivals as part of 'Sustainability Weeks'. Then we put the idea to our LA21 committee- thumbs up.
Next, we contacted the organizers of Love London Sustainability Weeks. Again, thumbs up. The whole team at Love London were very friendly, helpful and supportive but special thanks must go to Robert Peacock and Catherine Steele. We filled in an application for a grant. Competition was tough, there were various worthwhile projects from all over London, but when we attended a Love London organizer's workshop at City Hall we were delighted to learn we had won a special runner's up grant of £100. A small part of our projected £850 budget maybe but a great fillip nonetheless and a step in the right direction.
Meanwhile we had to put the idea to artsdepot management- another thumbs up but obviously there were several meetings yet to come to go through various details. Thanks to Dave O'Sullivan for organization and Claire Bowdler for all the help with printing. At this point we had to think how to make this thing really work, to really take off. What did we need to do? How do we involve the Council, the Police, Cycle groups? How do we get the rest of the money needed? How do we get people to turn up on the day? How do we make this event a success?
I realised that a lot of phoning, networking and meetings were the order of the day. Rosie was a great help in getting a beautiful presentation document produced complete with colour photos. There were meetings with the police (who were very helpful and turned up in force on the day), various cycling groups (Richard Reeve from Enfield Cyclists was particularly supportive and gave us photos and info on Enfield's car-free day), schools, youth groups, Friends of the Earth and other environmental groups, bike shops (special thanks to Central Cycles), sponsors (thanks to B Green Healthfoods and Waitrose, N. Finchley), Ilias Ioannou at LBB Road Safety Unit (who although not able to attend on the day was very helpful in getting cycle maps, highway codes and other safety literature to us) but by far the most illuminating meeting I had was one with Mike Freer, Leader of Barnet Council at the Business Park, New Southgate.
We had, on the whole, a very civilized meeting with Mike Freer, he offered us tea and biscuits, listened to the outline of the bike rally and very quickly got the idea, gave his approval and indicated that if we met the criteria and filled in the forms we would probably get a small grant for Dr Bike and road safety equipment. (We duly obtained, filled in and delivered the 4 page form with supporting documents and DID get our £192 grant for which I am grateful to Mike Freer.)
Unfortunately we did not see eye to eye on wider issues relating to transport and cycling. When I asked him if he would consider putting a dedicated cycle officer into next year's budget like nearly every other local council, he promptly replied 'no', he didn't see the need and he didn't have the money. Further to this he asked me if I would like him to cut old people's welfare to pay for a cycle officer. He said he saw no need to ask people in the borough to reduce the use of their cars. No, it was not possible to stage a 'car free' day in the borough and as far as global warming and climate change went he did not consider he had any responsibility to take any action with the council or the public, there was no money available and he considered it was up to the government to both fund and instruct him on the matter. He informed me that he had received neither funding nor instructions. I tried to bring the conversation round to less weighty matters and raised the subject of cycle training in the borough but fared little better. When I asked him how a young untrained cyclist could get him or herself and their bike to one of the two training centres in the borough, located in Edgware and East Barnet, if they happened to live in say, East Finchley his very quick reply was that if their mother really wanted them to be trained in cycling then she could always buy a bike rack for the car and take them there (and presumably pick them up again afterwards). I tried to point out that at the last census in 2001 there were 33,925 households in Barnet without a car but he didn't seem to like this, I think this was the only time he let his cool slip, he got visibly angry and started to talk over me. He seemed to have an answer for everything and everything seemed to come down to money.
Many people in the Borough of Barnet seemed to think a car free day was an anomaly and yet it is already happening, Enfield closed their main high street EIGHT years ago and this year Haringey Council are staging a car free day in Wood Green High Street. Mike Freer seemed to think that removing speed bumps and 'smooth roads are the best thing we can do for cyclists.’ It was time to say thank you for the £192 and head off. Christine Southam (FOE) and I both left our glorious leader's office feeling somewhat drained and bewildered. Believe it or not we were heading for yet another meeting.
And so it went on- phone calls and meetings. We got our rally included in Bike Week events and put on several websites. We designed and printed several thousand leaflets and got them distributed and displayed in local shops and libraries (special mention for Finchley Society 'postmen' who delivered 400 flyers). We liaised with TFL, London Cycling Campaign, Sustrans, Cycle Training UK, Sustainable Haringey, London Campaign for Better Transport, and various other groups and organizations even as far out as The Morris Dancers Federation. We got 10 million pounds worth of insurance cover with the Zurich Insurance Company. We located Richard Riddle, our Dr Bike, who was ably assisted on the day by John Silvertown and Charles Harvey. We got press coverage and did photo shoots. We redesigned the leaflets. The laminated posters went up all over town. Packages were posted, emails sent out. And so it went on, we consulted and conferred and the meetings went on.
One meeting that was very productive and not too boring was our own Greenacre Bicycle Rally action group meeting held at Trinity Church Hall, Nether Street. Here we worked out strategies, who was going to do what and how, who would man the welcome table, the 'pit stop' at Friary Park, and most importantly nominated our team of stewards. Phil Fletcher masterminded and produced the Greenacre Bicycle Rally Questionnaire. Another meeting that was actually quite fun was the Love London Press launch held at Regent's Park Zoo. This coincided with the opening of a recycled sculpture show and I met with old friend Laurie Simonson who had designed and built giant bugs and spiders in the penguin enclosure. Plenty of other friendly faces were there as well as plenty of yummy locally produced organic food and drink. I even turned my hand to 'guerilla bagging ', sat down at a sewing machine and made a shopping bag from recycled curtains.
As June 15th loomed nearer there seemed to be more and more chores to be done. The week before we had a training session and trial run for the stewards. Besides myself, Rosie and Phil, there were Paul and Tanya Adams, Dennis Bird, Miranda Dunn, Gillian Goddard and 'DG' McDonald. Thank you all. In the next few days all the stuff had to be sorted and packed ready for setting up at the artsdepot. Tables and signs and banners had to be organized. I went to a large garden centre to buy sticks and string and windmills and other things for decorating the bikes. I went to toyshops to buy balloons and whistles and hooters and inflatable planets, to the printers for stewards labels and flags and pennants, to Dan's Camping for fluorescent waistcoats. Phil and I had meetings with Waitrose who were kind enough to donate muesli bars and fruit juices. B Green's also supplied muesli bars and very generously donated a £25 voucher as a prize. Thank you to Ric and Danielle at Central Cycles who donated lights and puncture repair kits. The day before we had a flag making workshop. And of course our own bikes had to be in tip-top condition. Phew! At least the meetings had now stopped.
On the day we planned to have a lemonade table on the grass verges outside Friary Park. Robert organized and supplied the table and gazebo. Ralph Dudley arranged transportation and he and Adam Walton assembled our pit stop. Andrea Dutton was in charge of decorations and catering, she had made a lovely home made lentil soup- just the stuff for tired cyclist's legs, and boy! did we get a surprise when we topped the hill in Friern Barnet Lane for the first time and our pit stop came into view. There was a table cloth and Love London banners, balloons, and Greenacre Bicycle Rally pennants. All the bars were in wicker baskets, and the drinks in neat lines, with the soup in a 5 gallon pot keeping warm on camping gas! Well done guys! This includes, of course, Roger Enskat our trained first-aider based at the lemonade table who no doubt lent a hand.
Sunday morning, 10am. Too late if we've forgotten anything now. Richard is setting up Dr Bike and waiting for trade. I can see Sue Bird, Anne Dickson (all the way from Wales) and Tanya blowing up balloons.(100 blue and white Bike Week balloons to be strung up).
Lindsay Bamfield has transported the entire contents of the Greenacre Times table in her car. She is working frantically with Linda Dell and Gill Batten to get everything ready for the off, even my daughter Annika has turned up to help. DG and Miranda are directing traffic. The cops have turned up with smiles and bicycles to take part. I am kept busy putting up banners and most importantly fixing green and black Greenacre Bicycle Rally pennants to the kiddies' bikes. (Strangely, this is by far the most popular form of bike decoration much more desirable than balloons or anything else on offer)
Everyone is working their guts out, especially the guys on the table who apart from putting out all the decorations, maps, leaflets, puncture repair kits, copies of the Greenacre Times etc. etc. are now dealing with the public, registering cyclists, selling raffle tickets, giving instructions, and getting questionnaires filled in. Yikes! The mayor is getting ready, the cops have gone out to stop the traffic. Will Embliss makes a dramatic last minute entrance on his bike towing his wonderful home made giant revolving musical box. Cheers Will! Now we have a party happening! In a trice the mayor has cut the ribbon and Rosey leads off 138 cyclists on the first ever Greenacre Bicycle Rally. Hooray!
Throughout the afternoon Charlotte Stone and Donald Lyven are busy with their cameras taking lovely pictures, a few of which you see here. When we stop on the verges of Friary Park we see many happy people, many smiles, many friends, we even find Santa Claus has joined the procession and is towing his daughter round on a trailer full of presents. And for 3 short hours, we, the cyclists, the underdogs, the people of tomorrow, we have control of the roads AND IT FEELS GREAT.
So, was it easy? No, it was very hard work. Was it worth it? Maybe. Was it Fun? Yes sir! Will we be back next year? You betcha! Back in force. See you June 2009!
Greenacre Bicycle Rally Team
