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Sustainable Transport: Climate Camp Style

Lance Armstrong | 27.07.2008 13:01 | Climate Camp 2008 | Climate Chaos

The bicycle caravan heading down to Kingsnorth from Scotland arrived in Newcastle Upon Tyne yesterday.



The camp for climate action is already hotting up. Literally.
The group has made their way down from the Scottish Borders in blistering heat. They arrived looking happy and a wee bit sunburnt.
The group plan to cycle to to the camp for climate action calling at some of the u:k’s loveliest beauty spots and some of the ugliest polluters alike. See map on www.climatecamp.org.uk for details.
Unfortunately one of the riders took a tumble in the Scottish Border region and has fractured her elbow. The bicycle caravan and the injured rider are determined to carry on and to confront E-on and the UK governments coal fired and nuclear energy policy which is sponsoring climate chaos.
CALL OUT
The bicycle group are calling on all groups and individuals to put on your helmets and get on your bike. Join the cycle caravan to Kingsnorth and join the movement to stop climate change.
CONTACT: 07786 381674 - Leave a message and they will get in touch.
The 2008 climate camp is happening 3-11 August close to Kingsnorth power station in Kent, site of the proposed new coal fired power station. Everybody welcome!

Lance Armstrong

Comments

Hide the following 10 comments

Why on earth mention helmets

28.07.2008 09:00

"The bicycle group are calling on all groups and individuals to put on your helmets and get on your bike."

Remove the words "put on your helmets and" and I would agree with every word. Because of those five words I won't be supporting this ride. Do think before making foolish statements.

I see that several of the riders in the photograph are not wearing bits of plastic on their heads.

www.cyclehelmets.org has more information.

Me

Use front handlebar baskets instead of rear paniers

28.07.2008 10:37

If you put all your luggage in rear paniers then you will put too much weight on the back wheel and break the spokes. Instead use large supportted front handlebar baskets over the front wheel to distribute the weight more evenly. This put less pressure on the back wheel spokes.

cyclist

cor blimey....

28.07.2008 13:56

...is no-one actually going to say "chuffing nice one cyclista's"??

ok only me then - chuffing nice one, feeling envious that i'm neither on me bike nor able to cycle down to camp - but will see ya there with more hearty congratulations....

viral

Helmets?

28.07.2008 16:16

Given that the only effect of helmet promotion and laws is to deter people from cycling, the comment about helmets is utterly unjustified. I'm sure these people are well-intentioned, but asking people to support them would be like asking us to support less cycling! And what happens to discarded helmets? do they get recycled or just dumped in landfill, not to mention the energy it takes to make one and transport it.

If they're so utterly misinformed about helmets, you've got to wonder what else they're misinformed about.

Richard Burton
mail e-mail: burtthebike@blueyonder.co.uk

to Me

28.07.2008 17:01

You are not going to support this bike ride because of a throwaway comment on helmets. Jeez... grow up. You had no intention of doing anything to support it in the first place and you sound like you've the politics of an asshole. Fair play to the cyclists - you've got my support, folks. See you at the Climate Camp.

unnecessary

More

28.07.2008 19:34

Anyone who rationally campaigns about climate change has my support, but people who add to climate change by wearing and promoting cycle helmets doesn't. They are clearly misinformed, and don't understand even the most basic issues involved, like cycle helmets don't make you safer for a start.

Richard Burton
mail e-mail: burtthebike@blueyonder.co.uk

Why Helmets ask the injured rider

29.07.2008 08:59

I spent the evening in A&E with one of the riders, as the article stated there had been an accident in the borders, the rider ended up with a fractured elbow covered in cuts and bruises and can no longer take part in the bike caravan. She was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash, if it was'nt for the helmet it may have been a fractured skull,clearly it is up to the individual to decide on what saftey gear to wear and weather that saftey gear is 'sustainable' or not.
I feel it is unfair to sit at your keyboard and split hairs over trival issues such as crash helmets when what these folk are doing is a great thing.
The real issue here is climate change and these cyclists are doing positive actions lets support them

Toon crash space

lance armstrong
mail e-mail: nodirtycoal@yahoo.co.uk

why dont you go pick knits off a koala bears bottom, burty worty &

29.07.2008 09:26

have you checked out rafting helmets or skydivers helmets, they absorb shock better without whiplash etc that badly designed cycle helmets can create+ they look alot cooler!!;)
Its called real progress, ask any motorbiker, helmets are bloody essential.
Anyway lets have this deabte somethere else, if you dont want to help stop climate change because of one minor sentence clear off your clearly a timewaster or troll sympathiser.
Well done to ccampers, your sexy& ace!

Green syndicalist

Helmets

29.07.2008 14:19

The above report was written by supporters of the cyclists, not the cyclists themselves. We decided to include the bit about helmets because they do make you safer, not because the cyclists had asked us to. I think we made the wrong decision there. A helmet reduces the risk of facial damage if you fall off and of death in some collisions with other vehicles. People are encouraged to join the bike ride irrespective of their position on the helmet question. Fuck "Me"!

Lance Armstrong

You're right Lance.....

01.08.2008 21:08

In that you admit that your comment about helmets was wrong. Unfortunately, you haven't bothered reading any evidence about cycle helmets, otherwise you would also have agreed that they don't make any difference, and not claimed that they made you safer. Nowhere that has introduced a helmet law or had massive propaganda about cycle helmets has been able to show any reduction in risk to cyclists. The opposite appears to be the case.

For people who might have been supposed to be capable of independent thought, and less susceptible to propaganda, you show a touching faith in the capitalist system which has sold you something useless, but very profitable. You've been had sucker!

Richard Burton
mail e-mail: burtthebike@blueyonder.co.uk