A London businessman suffered a terrible indignity while dodging the Ash Cloud Crisis this weekend, reports the BBC: he had to buy a woman's bike to cycle on to a ferry with.
I've always rather enjoyed cycling on to and off of ferries. There's a chapter about it in my 50 Quirky Bike Rides book.
And we can report that the Isle of Man ferry, contrary to the cycling enforcers of Norfolkline in the news story, insists that you dismount and walk your bike en route to or from Douglas (right).
But then, on the Isle of Man, it was probably an offence until recently for men to ride women's bikes, until those meddling EU bureaucrats forced them to harmonise.
He was lucky to be able to buy a women's bike! When I tried it took weeks and weeks and visits to lots of bike shops before paying a large deposit to order one in specially. And "they" wonder why women don't cycle more. Ggrr. Got a real bee in my bonnet about this one!
ReplyDeleteHe should count himself lucky to be able to get back to the UK at all; worse still is that apparently, once in Dover, he had to 'abandon the bike in order to get the bus to Dover train station'; it's only about a mile away, why didn't he cycle?! This kind of hand to mouth tittering about cyclists which is still so prevalent in the UK press drives me crazy.
ReplyDeleteAnd I was required to wheel my bike up the ramp onto the Holyhead - Dublin ferry last year. The member of staff in charge said this was because cyclists had slipped over on the ramp in the past.
ReplyDeleteCan't see the Ferry companies logic here, making people take more stuff on the ferry for no good reason. Its not like the foot passengers are segregated from the cycle and car passengers.
ReplyDeleteA bike surely would have been a great use at the other end as getting from the ferry port in Dover onto however he was continuing his journey would be easier by bike.
Also being a pendant, the Isle of Man isn't in the EU.
Being pedantic, you're a pedant, not a pendant!
ReplyDeleteNot in the EU? You'll be trying to tell me it's not in the Commonwealth next! Oh...
ReplyDeleteBut it is covered by the European Court of Justice, or something like that. Hence Rob and I being allowed to share a small tent without being birched and forced to run naked through the streets of Douglas.
ReplyDeleteI'd heard that was par for the course on the Isle, DESPITE their rather odd laws and official position towards that sort of thing....
ReplyDeleteWell actually, we did see some rather odd pub crawl groups, so maybe you're not wrong...
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