Your Instructor: Dilys Gartside
Not having a bike as a child, my head was turned from car to cycle while studying at Law College in the late 1970s. Aged 26, I bought my first bike, a Falcon Black Diamond, and commuted to work for a decade, disregarding jibes of inappropriate behavior for a female solicitor! Such behavior continued when raising a family and ‘sharing lifts’ meant everyone going by bike.
Having taught many children to ride under Southampton Council’s cycling scheme, I realised that much more was needed so I :
- 2005 - Retrained and qualified as a National Standard Cycle Training instructor setting up Cyclewise to work as a freelance instructor and campaigner for cycling
- 2008 - Closed my law practice and became a fulltime instructor
- 2009 - Named as CUK SE England Volunteer of Year
- 2011 - Named as runner-up CUK Campaigner of Year
- 2011 - Qualified as British Cycling Ride Leader and Route Planner
- 2014 - Moved to North Dorset where I initiated Council subsidised adult cycle training and took on campaign role of Dorset Cyclists Network area Coordinator
- 2017 - Awarded CUK Campaign of Year for re-opening mile long missing link to ND Trailways
- 2018 - Listed in CUK ‘100 Women in Cycling’
Not having a bike as a child, my head was turned from car to cycle while studying at Law College in the late 1970s. Aged 26, I bought my first bike, a Falcon Black Diamond, and commuted to work for a decade, disregarding jibes of inappropriate behavior for a female solicitor! Such behavior continued when raising a family and ‘sharing lifts’ meant everyone going by bike.
Having taught many children to ride under Southampton Council’s cycling scheme, I realised that much more was needed so I :
- 2005 - Retrained and qualified as a National Standard Cycle Training instructor setting up Cyclewise to work as a freelance instructor and campaigner for cycling
- 2008 - Closed my law practice and became a fulltime instructor
- 2009 - Named as CUK SE England Volunteer of Year
- 2011 - Named as runner-up CUK Campaigner of Year
- 2011 - Qualified as British Cycling Ride Leader and Route Planner
- 2014 - Moved to North Dorset where I initiated Council subsidised adult cycle training and took on campaign role of Dorset Cyclists Network area Coordinator
- 2017 - Awarded CUK Campaign of Year for re-opening mile long missing link to ND Trailways
- 2018 - Listed in CUK ‘100 Women in Cycling’