Cycling Stories: Craig, IAmBikes

Ahead of the opening of cycling exhibition 'The Perfect Machine' at Summerlee Museum in July 2014 we are profiling cyclists from around Lanarkshire and Glasgow. Craig works at IAmBikes, a cycling charity in Cumbernauld.  Support their Cycle to the Moon campaign to get more people cycling by visiting the campaign website.

“I have been cycling since I was six, seven then I took it kind of seriously when I was about fourteen. I started doing a wee bit of cross-country and then I done I wee bit of downhilling and I done thatI for about eight or nine years. Then I quit because I hurt myself but I would like to keep doing it, it’s a sport I would love to get back into again. “It’s only lately I have been doing lot of single track and other kind of stuff as you can see by my face. I had an accident last weekend: I came off my bike and slammed straight into the ground. That’s the best bit about it, cycling and hitting it then getting up and keep going. I mean I didn’t stop, I went got my face seen to and just kept cycling. That’s a reason I like cycling, you don’t know what’s going to happen, a surprise round every corner you would say! “I would say that cycling did change my life because I was 28 stone at one point and I went to the doctors and they said you need to start losing weight because I’ve got fatty tissue on my liver and I could feel the effect of being so heavy. Then I decided I will start going to the gym, start cycling and because I was unemployed at the time as well I had two years of just cycling and I got myself down to 17 stone. A good 60% of it was just cycling everywhere I went, don’t take the car just cycle unless I have to take the car.”

If you would like to be featured in 'Cycling Stories' please contact Justin Parkes, Industrial History Curator on 01236 856376; ParkesJ@culturenl.co.uk

'The Perfect Machine', Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life, Coatbridge
5 July to 14 September 2014