Mark Lee Colbourne MBE on cycling and coronavirus

Over lockdown, one of the hardest items to get your hands on across the UK, was a bike. Many decided they wanted to take up cycling, with 1.3 million Brits purchasing a bike during this period. Whether it was for a new hobby, or simply a safer mode of transport to get to work, Brits were begging for bikes. Though, new research has shown that only a third of the UK population cycles every month.

The research commissioned by PokerStars has looked at how much time Brits are actually spending on their bikes and found that Brits spend just under three months of their whole lifetime cycling. This means that throughout their lifetime the average UK adult is only spending 83 days on a bike. Compared to the Spanish this is minimal with the research showing they spend nearly double the amount of time in their lifetime on a bike.

For those Brits that are putting their bikes to good use, being adventurous and exploring new places is the most popular reason why people chose to cycle with over a fifth (21%) stating this as their reasoning. Others suggest they use bikes to do tricks (6%) or some saying they cycle for the thrill of it (15%). Interestingly competitions within cycling drives the younger generation with 1 in 6 (16%) of those 16-24 suggesting they feel competitive when cycling compared to just 1% of those over 55.

Aston spoke to Mark Lee Colbourne MBE, world and Paralympic cycling champion to discuss the research around Brits and their bikes.

Photo by Max Bender on Unsplash