It's a sad sad situation

I received two sad letters this week.

The first was from my local MP Laura Moffatt informing me she was standing down and not fighting the next General Election.

I admit I shed a tear.

We have been friends for the past ten years and in that time I have seen her in action on numerous occasions. Selfless, passionate, honest, loyal, trustworthy, hard-working, dynamic and warm-hearted are just a few adjectives that trip off my pen with ease.
Laura was a politician that always went that little bit further than most others. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays she would often arrive home after midnight and her weekends were more often than not a mixture of surgeries and charity work. Despite our Tory-biased local press often misrepresenting her most people knew that the local hospital where she nursed for two decades would not still be open if it were not for her efforts.
We were very confident Laura would retain her seat despite having the smallest majority of all MPs at the last election – now we shall never know!
I feel a little light has gone out in my world and I wonder if we shall ever see the likes of Laura Jean Moffatt again – she was, and remains of course, a true one-off.

The second letter I received (or rather an email) was from an old pal, Tim Selby, who has just had a very serious cycling accident and is now paralysed from the waist down.
The accident was not caused by a pothole or during difficult driving conditions but by a combination of a cross wind and an intimidatory passing lorry causing him to take evasive action onto the grass and back onto the road in front of a different lorry!
As a cyclist myself I feel a mixture of anger and sadness. I have had similar incidents myself and only by the grace of God am I alive to write this blog.
We are told to ‘THINK BIKE’ but in this country most motorists think only PEST and rarely do I complete a ride without some near miss or heart-stopping moment. The Government continually tell us to use our bikes but do parents really want their children to risk their lives on our roads with all the uneducated motorists about.
Even with the roads in the state of repair that they are in we are constantly tooted and screamed at if we are more than a foot from the Kerb! Don’t these people know that we are much happier near the kerb but it is not always possible to ride there because of badly-damaged roads, ill-fitting drain or protruding man-holes.
It is a very British problem at the moment as anyone who has ever ridden on the Continent will tell you. In many countries of Europe it is normal to ride two abreast never having to worry about traffic as motorists will pass when they are able and are happy to sit behind a group of cyclists until an opportune time to overtake. In England the mentality is very different – it is frustration and scorn – and we feel it – and yes we are intimidated – scared if you like.
I had a guy overtake me last week near my home and he actually cut me up so badly his offside wheels went up the kerb and I was forced to jump up onto the kerb to avoid his wheels! The guy pulled into the local shops 100 yards ahead and I followed him into the car park to enquire what it was all about. He got out of his van and started swearing away that it was a 20mph speed limit (I had just completed a training ride and was poodling down my street at a little above walking pace!). I told him I had a groin strain and that having to ride up the kerb was not aiding the healing process. More swear words followed to the effect that he couldn’t care less and I was left standing there with hands on hips flabbergasted. He walked away and then turned around and said “I suppose you are going to report me now” to which I assured him I had no intention of doing. My only thought was to try and understand the thought process but it became clear that there was no thought process, no motive, no reason, just a very bad tempered bloke who for that moment in time decided to scare me witless.

But you see that is all it takes.

Tim was a social rider and one of the most talented snooker players I have ever seen. At the moment all he can think of is his wife and four children and although he does have some hope for regaining partial feeling he will never walk unaided and yet no one feels responsible. It was just an accident! In his heart of hearts I wonder if the lorry driver that caused the initial wobble (didn’t stop and was never found) has any regrets.
It is no fun driving on our roads but I have had several friends from my local cycling club, Crawley Wheelers, killed and maimed in the ten years I have ridden with them.
I know the risks but at the moment I am feeling that if I survive white-van-man then the state of the roads will probably do for me!

I’ll pray for Tim’s recovery but I’ll also pray for the hearts of man to change