52 Cycling Voices (in the time of coronavirus) - 31: Bithja Jones

Given the effect that coronavirus has had on sporting activities all over the world, it is not surprising that cycle racing has been affected too. A number of the national championship races didn't take place in the UK either. One event that did take place, and didn't fail to disappoint were the National Hill Climb Championships. They took place on Streatley Hill, just into the Chiltern Hills near Reading, and had a record turn-out of women. There were 110 entries and 93 women took the start line. Among them was local racer, Bithja Jones who started cycle racing a couple of years ago, and did her first hill climb race last year. With dedicated training, and help from her club Pankhurst Cycles she only went and won this year's championships, even beating the experienced hotly tipped favourite Mary Wilkinson. As an also-ran in the race who finished quite at the opposite end of the result sheet from Bithja, I was interested in talking to this single mum of two, who is also an artist, and finding out how she rolls. 

(Photo: Tim Phillips)

Bithja Jones (aka B, to her friends) aged 41

From: Kaltenkirchen (near Hamburg), Germany

Lives: Reading

Occupation: Support Assistant at a Special needs school

I have always been a keen cyclist, and cycled everywhere. I didn't get a driving licence until my son was born in 2012. As a 15-year old, when I had my first little jobs -  a paper round and then a cleaning job at a hair dressers - I saved up all that money to buy myself a decent bike. It was a Schwinn Crosspoint and I was really proud of it. My father took me and my siblings on bike packing holidays and those weeks were always very special. My longest ride was when I did a cycle tour from Germany to Croatia and back. I was 20 at the time, studying sculpture at Dresden University. 

Always cycling with the kids - even as toddlers

When my kids were in preschool, I started cycling with them. 

Then as soon as my daughter was old enough to sit on a bike seat I bought a Dutch-style Bakfiets. Like that, I could ride my bike with them and didn’t feel stuck at home. That was a great investment and it made me very happy. 

When I moved house 18 months ago, we started cycling the 4km-journey to school every morning, each of us on our own bikes. My daughter had just turned 5, and my son was 7 at that time.

I had a couple of years of running, which I loved. I enjoyed competitive events and got quite fast, coming 3rd at the Windsor 10k. But then at the end of 2018 I had to stop because of injuries. So I went to my local bike shop, Pankhurst Cycles, and bought my first proper road bike - another really good investment.

At Windsor 10k

I joined Pankhurst Cycles cycle club and started going on their weekly shop rides, recording my rides on Strava. My club mates commented on my speed and my power up hills. At first I was a bit embarrassed, because I got between 10 an 20 new Queen of the Mountains (QOMs) every time I went on a ride.  I thought my Garmin was broken, but it turned out that wasn't the case - I was just quite fast! 

Olly and Rikki from the shop supported me when I said I wanted to give track cycling a go. They prepared a bike for me, and gave some helpful tips and advice (I had never ridden a fixie before). Then after a successful track season I took part in my first hill climb race up Wittenham Clumps, near Didcot, in August 2019.

Next, I did the Reading CC double Hill climbs on Flint Hill and Streatley Hill and won both, including breaking Maryka Sennema's record on Streatley Hill in a time of 3:03.  I also raced the National Championships in Haytor Hill, Devon and came 13th.

After more training, I did the warm-up hill climb on Streatley Hill in September, run by Didcot Phoenix and Reading CC and broke the record again in 2:54. At the Nationals I went even faster. It's true I like to really immerse myself in what I do and try to do things as well as I can. 

Breaking the record on Walbury Hill
(photo: Steve Dixon)

Then nationals were definitely my biggest win so far. This has only been my second hill climb season and the Nationals this year was my 12th hill climb race.

This year's event was very different from what I had anticipated a year ago. Streatley is a short course and it would have been lined with spectators and would have been very noisy. 

I was hoping to get loads of my friends to support me and cheer me on and, of course, members of our cycling club Pankhurst Cycles which is very local. But given that there were no spectators allowed, it was great that the marshals on the course made an effort and cheered everyone on. It felt good!

I knew I had given everything on the climb, I had nothing left, and I think I also knew somehow that I had done well. I heard someone shouting ”new course record”. I couldn’t stand on my legs and I had a massive headache and quickly found a patch of grass to sit down and recover.

I knew my time quite quickly after I finished and when I heard I had done 2:47 I was very happy. It had been my goal to ride a sub 2:50. But I knew that the strongest rider, Mary Wilkinson was still to come. I had never raced against her but had heard a lot about her. Someone came over after a few minutes (maybe just 2 minutes or so after I had crossed the line) and told me that I had won. It all felt very strange and surreal, sitting there on the grass feeling awful and so happy at the same time!

At once, everyone around was very nice to me and congratulated me. I think the hill climbers are a fantastic lot. They are so friendly and welcoming and everyone cheers everyone on and every rider gets the respect they deserve. 

A hill climb is always hard. Even if you end up with the slowest time, it is still a hard effort and you get applauded for doing it and for putting in that amazing effort. And, of course, I am massively proud that I was able to keep up and even beat some amazing and experienced riders!

A very supportive environment at Pankhurst Cycles

This was such a special and fantastic event with a great atmosphere despite the difficulties of the pandemic.

Pankhurst Cycles is a very cool bike shop with very friendly people running it. They have a cycling club affiliated with the shop and organise weekly group rides and there are a handful of people racing in the track league in Reading, and a few do cyclocross races. 

They have always been very supportive and I love going there at the weekend for a coffee and just to hang around and catch up. Their support in the run-up to the Nationals this year was amazing. A friend from the club sponsored me and provided the Tifosi Mons frame that I rode this season, and Pankhurst Cycles equipped it with all the right gear for my hill climb races. Rikki Pankhurst was my supporter at most of the races this season and I didn’t have to worry about anything other than cycling up a hill as fast as possible.

The campaign run by Laura Hayley to get more women entrants was very successful. It made this year’s event very special, and seeing so many women at the Nationals was just fantastic. It would be so great to see more of that!  I hope lots of women get inspired and feel encouraged to enter events. We are getting a road bike ready for my daughter.

To get more women to participate in events there are a few things like equal prize money and separate results on the Cycling Time Trials webpage that need to be sorted. It’s a surprise really that things are so unequal still in some places, when you think about it. 

But I think it is also really important that we women encourage and motivate each other and set good examples. The press could help with that too and give the women’s event more coverage. 

To any woman who is considering doing a hill climb race I'd say just do it! If you are scared or feel intimidated, find someone to support you. Enter events together as friends, never hesitate to ask other women who are already racing. I am 100% sure they would love to help anyone with worries or concerns and would love to be helpful and supportive. I am always happy to chat if anyone has got questions. Get in touch and just do it!

Hopefully there'll track cycling in 2021

Rumours are that next year's race will be on Winnats Pass. I don’t know the hill but it looks great on Strava! I can’t wait, and will train hard, explore the course and do my best to defend my title! I am planning to do a bike packing holiday next summer and will cycle to the Peak District for some climbing practice.

I also do track cycling but because of the pandemic there were no events this year and I have only done one season since gaining my accreditation in April 2019. My first season on the track went quite well, as I became the track champion at the Reading league.

Next year, hopefully, track cycling will go ahead again. I also want to do lots of rides to the sea, get a little stronger and faster, and maybe give road racing a go if I can fit it in. I also hope I can win some hill climbs, and of course defend my title. The children and I want to fly to Hamburg to collect a tandem that is still at my sister's place. We will fit a tag-along to it and then cycle from Hamburg back home to Reading. That’s going to be our first cycling adventure holiday together.

My everyday schedule means I am quite busy, and often feel like there is not enough time to do all the things that I want to do. I am a single mum-of-two, with a full time job. I also love doing art and book illustrations and go cycling as much as I can. 

It’s a good balance though and it’s great to be able to go for an explosive quick ride after a tough day at work, or go cycling with my children. They are very passionate about cycling too, and hope to cycle around the world with me in a few years. 

Bithja's cycle-themed art

My art is often about cycling as well, so all the different areas of my life feed into each other. So I get ideas from my work for my art, or go cycling for mindful recovery time, and it all works together really well. I also cycle with my children 4km to school every morning, then cycle to work (another 6km), then do the same thing again in the afternoon. Some of my training is done on this daily commute.

Overall, my cycling is done for fun. I don’t really feel the pressure so much, but I do get nervous before a race. Mind you, I think you need that to perform well. 

With my art, it's the other way around. I feel more pressure doing a commissioned piece of art that someone is paying for, than I do for a bike race, as it has to be perfect. Having said that, I do a lot of art for myself, and I still do my best because it gives me great satisfaction and I love it!

When I first arrived in the UK 12 years ago I was terrified of cycling on the roads, but now I find it a lot easier.  I don’t know whether cycling has improved or maybe I have just got used to it. 

Reading is not bad for cycling. There is the cycle path along the River Thames, which I use a lot with the kids, and lots of short cuts where you can avoid the major roads and the traffic. Also I just love the countryside around Reading. The Chilterns and the North Wessex Downs are beautiful, and on a long ride you can cycle to the South coast and back.

At work in Pankhurst Cycles

Overall, I think it’s much more common in Germany to use a bike as a means of transport than in the UK. Therefore there are more cyclists on the road, and the awareness for cyclists by motorists is much better. The road surfaces are a lot nicer as well. Schools have large bike parking areas as most students ride to school on their bikes.

Dealing with the Covid pandemic has not been easy. I live in a small flat with my kids and we haven’t got a garden. We are all outdoorsy people, so it is hard to deal with, but you just have to get on with it and make it work. 

The pre-school I was working in closed down for good partly due to the pandemic, so I lost my job there. I continued my other job, working two days a week at Pankhurst Cycles but it was not an easy time. 

Luckily, I found a new job in a school for children with special needs and I absolutely love my work. But sadly, this new job didn’t leave me enough time to carry on with my work in the bike shop.

When it comes to favourite places to cycle - I went on a cycling holiday in the Alps in the Summer 2019 and that was brilliant. I really want to go back again. Slovenia is also a very beautiful place to cycle through, and there are so many places I haven’t explored yet, even quite close here in Britain. I hope my children’s passion for cycling will carry on and we can go do our round-the-world trip, exploring many new places together.  

My favourite person to cycle with is someone a tiny bit stronger and faster than me so I have to work hard to keep up. I just like pushing myself! For a long tour I would like to go with my sister, Sarah. We haven’t been on a bike ride together for many years but we did lots of bike packing tours together in the past and we would get on very well. She visited me here in England last year when I won on Streatley Hill the first time. It was great to see her here and to have her support.

Self-portrait

Bithja Moor Illustrations: 

http://www.bithjamoor.net

Facebook: 

www.facebook.com/bithjamoor

Bithja on Strava: 

https://www.strava.com/athletes/bithja_jones

Pankhurst Cycles: 

https://www.pankhurstcycles.co.uk/

Other Cycling Voices

Claire Floret

Adeline Moreau

Janet Birkmyre

Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig

Jenni Gwiazdowski

Gemma Fernandez

Tracey Moseley

Geraldine Glowinski

Hannah Bussey

Carolyn Hewett-Maessen

Caroline Martinez

Maria David

Name our London cycle lanes - Maurice Burton and Beryl Burton in the frame

The beady eyed among you will have noticed that London has a number of segregated cycle lanes. As well as the coronavirus-led pop-up lanes there are also the permanent ones that existed back when Corona was just a beer people wanted to be seen sipping to look trendy while in a bar on the River Thames. (Sadly, this word has set a different sort of trend.) 

The permanent lanes are cycleways with official names, or rather alpha-numerical names. As a south Londoner I regularly use CS7 that goes through Tooting and Clapham. I also use CS6, which starts at Elephant and Castle and goes through Southwark, over Blackfriars Bridge and all the way to Kings Cross. Sometimes I use CS3 when riding from Docklands to Tower Bridge, along the Thames and onwards to Westminster.

Instead of having letters and numbers for these cycleways, why not give them actual names? So the bike manufacturers Brompton, in partnership with a climate change charity, Possible, and Covent Garden, asked for nominations for names for the different cycleways, and we have been given the chance to vote for the different names proposed.  

Among these names are this year's Giro d'Italia winner Tao Geoghegan Hart and former Tottenham Labour MP Bernie Grant for CS1 in North London. There is also Mary Seacole, a black nurse who set up a hospital during the Crimean War, for CS3 that goes through Central London where she was based, and Charlie Chaplin, a comic actor, for CS4 in Southwark.

Maurice Burton - read more about his life on Cyclist.co.uk

A couple of names that I am pleased to see nominated are two people by the name of Burton. Maurice Burton for CS7 in South London, and Beryl Burton for CS2 to Stratford/Olympic Park. They are no relation to each other, but they are very prominent people in cycling.

Maurice Burton is very well known among club cyclists all over the UK and beyond, though London is his home town. Thousands of people will have bought bikes from him at his shop De Ver Cycles on Streatham High Road, South London. But do all the people who go in his shop know that he is a British Cycling Champion? Maurice Burton had a successful racing career on the track during the early 70s, having won British National titles in 1974 and 1975, and representing Britain at the Commonwealth Games in 1974. 

Unfortunately, racist attitudes in those days meant that Maurice's efforts to bid for greater success were thwarted, notably when he tried to qualify for the Montreal Olympics in 1976. He later moved to Belgium and raced on the demanding six-day circuits - track races that take place over six days. While there he made many friends with other racers - mainly Belgian riders, and also Gary Wiggins, father of Bradley.

When I got into competitive cycling I bought my first few bikes from De Ver Cycles - a hyrid, and two road bikes. Maurice was always very helpful and took the time to explain the bikes and make sure I had the most suitable one for me. Other customers have given similar feedback about how helpful and encouraging he has been. As well as that De Ver Cycles have sponsored local children's cycling clubs like Sutton Cycling Club, supported other youngsters getting into cycling, and they have an inclusive cycling club, welcoming people of all abilities. 

So given his success and involvement in his local community, I think it is only fitting that a bike lane in South London be named after Maurice Burton.

Beryl at a race in Morecambe (1966) (photo: Brian Townley)

Beryl Burton is probably the most successful female bike racer of any era. She had 90 wins over a period of  20 years between the 1950s and 70s. In her day, women's racing was restricted, with a lot of it being time trials, a bit of track and limited road racing. Racing was over quite short distances and was not a professional sport for women. 

A women's road race wasn't included in the Olympics until 1984, long after Beryl had retired. In her time, she won seven world championship titles, and held the 12-hour record, of 277.25 miles - for a time, more miles done than any man or woman. 

Sadly, Beryl didn't get to meet some of our modern-day female champions like Lizzie Deignan, Laura Kenny, or Marianne Vos. Burton died from heart failure in 1996, while cycling around her home town, near Leeds, delivering invitations for people to attend her 59th birthday party a few days later.

Beryl Burton's daughter Denise Burton-Cole was also a good racer and competed against her mother in the 70s. 

I had the pleasure of meeting Denise recently at the Tour de Yorkshire bike race. She still cycles now with her husband, and I am sure Denise will drop more than a few of us on those Pennine Hills!

Beryl Burton already has a cycle lane named after her, a 2.8km path between Harrogate and Knaresborough, not far from her home town, which is fitting. However, we see very few other references to Beryl Burton considering all her success in the cycling, so I think that a lane named after her that goes to the Olympic Velodrome would be an inspirational legacy for this great rider. The Velodrome in Lee Valley has been the scene of some of our greatest achievements by British female cyclists (notably at the London 2012 Olympics), so it would be good to have her honoured at a place synonymous with British success in cycling. 

Voting closes today at 23:59 hours.

The full list of lanes and the various nominees can be found on the Possible website.  

Enjoying my time with Brompton

Earlier this year I took part in a photo shoot for Brompton, as part of their new marketing campaign. It was a pretty fun day out, going around different parts of central London and being photographed with other models. I wasn't exactly sure when or even where the photos would be published, and as I got busy doing other things I didn't pay that much attention. The job was done and dusted, and I probably had my head immersed in another writing project. 

Is a nice surprise to see yourself featured on Instagram

So it was quite a surprise yesterday to see myself tagged in a friend's post on Instagram, and discover that I was featured in one of Brompton's Instagram stories. As well as a few photos of me on the bike, they published the mini interview about cycling that I did for their blog.

Even though I write for different publications and have done so for a number of years, it still warms my cockles to see something I wrote being published to a mass audience - especially when it's unexpected.

Brompton sent me that very bike after shoot, so I am now the proud owner of these outstanding folding bikes. I really like the racing green colour. That fits very much my style, and I am thankful that the bike is 6-speed given that I have a hill to go up practically as soon as I leave my home! I look forward to having many more pleasant moments riding this bike.

Related posts

New bike day - Brompton

Bike life with the Liv Thrive E+ e-bike

Cycle route: South London to Central (mainly traffic-free)

Shoot story - Como

Photo of the day - 31: Scary stuff in the time of coronavirus

Well, for Halloween if we wanted to hear scary stuff all we needed to do was switch on the TV today! After a full lock-down in the Spring of this year, and a very gradual re-opening of businesses and schools over the summer - including indulging in the restaurants doing "eat out to help out" things are now making a downturn again. 

There had been a lot of speculation as places in the Northwest and parts of the Midlands were undergoing a lock-down. So finally, rather than put up with kids turning up at our houses doing Trick or Treat, we had to suffer a worse fate of seeing Prime Minister Boris Johnson making his televised address to the nation. So as of next Thursday we will be in lockdown again. It won't be quite as strict as "Lockdown 1.0" since people will still be travelling to and from their place of work, schools will be open, and people like plumbers and electricians can still attend your home if need be. However, gyms, sport centres, beauty salons, bars, restaurants and all shops selling non-essential items will be closed, and we have been told to avoid non-essential travel. 

It wasn't quite the announcement that we were wanting. So instead of celebrating Halloween and Bonfire Night, which is around the corner we are looking forward to another period of staying at home, not seeing friends and family as a group. We can only meet with one other person in an outdoor setting and maintain a social distance. Apparently this lockdown will last until 2nd December, but people are sceptical and believe this period could be extended. We may not even be able to see family at Christmas at this rate. All this is leaving people scared and anxious. I was meant to do a cyclocross race today, but didn't go because I was not feeling on form to race. That's a shame now as I don't know when next there will be another one. Same for all other races and competitions, plus yoga classes. Personally, I have managed to keep busy and keep the cheques coming in to pay my bills. But it is very scary seeing what is happening to other businesses, and with all these extended closures there is a worry that some of my favourite places my end up going out of business. 

It would have been good to end the month on an upbeat tone, but with the news that was delivered this evening it does look like we are living in scary times. 

Photo of the day - 30: Flashback Friday post

The path back to Ings from the Garburn Pass

This is not a trip I did in October, but at the end of August, over the bank holiday weekend - something from which I have happy memories. This year may have been a little different due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but I have done as much as I can to maintain a near normal everyday life, and to find equally fun alternatives to the things which are currently off-limits. I had planned on going to France in the summer, but because I didn't fancy doing a 14-day quarantine on my return I decided not to do the trip. Every Thursday, the government makes an announcement about the latest countries to go on the quarantine list. The problem with that is that Boris Johnson and his government only give two days' notice before the new rules come into effect. This means that while you're on holiday, if the country you are in suddenly gets announced as being on the list you then have to make a mad dash home in order to avoid going into quarantine. I wouldn't want to have that Damoclean sword hanging over me while trying to enjoy my trip or after I have booked my travel plans. So to avoid those issues, I decided to take my summer break within the UK - like most other people. And it hasn't been bad at all. At the end of July I went to the Peak District, and a month later I went to the Lake District. This photo is from when I did a mountain bike ride from Ings, mid-way between Kendal and Windermere and rode over a trail known as the Garburn Pass to reach Kentmere village. Initially the trail was manageable, with lovely views of Lake Windermere, Kirkstone Pass, and peaks like Stony Cove Pike and Red Screes in the distance. The ride became a little bit tough as the path became strewn with lots of rocks and boulders. Being on my 20-year old hard-tail didn't really cut it so I spent a bit of time doing hike-a-bike, including on the descent. 

Eventually, the path became more manageable as I was on a very bumpy adrenaline-filled descent to the village of Kentmere. From there my ride then went over another undulating bridleway that went past heather covered pastures along single track and through fords. The area looked really pretty in the sunshine, and it seemed that this was quite a popular area with cyclists, as I bumped into quite a few - a couple of family rides as well as club mountain bikers. By the time I arrived back in Ings I had a big smile on my face, having enjoyed a really fun ride. 

Ings is quite a handy place. There are wild and wonderful areas to go walking, a popular country pub, and more importantly for me, a mountain bike shop, Bike Treks.

I definitely plan to return there again and ride it with a full suspension bike. Hopefully I will get up to near Ullswater. Or maybe I will just head over with the masses to Grizedale Forest. I don't know entirely where I will go, but as a certain famous pop star said, I promise it won't be boring.

Photo of the day - 29: As featured in Cycling Weekly magazine

Quelle surprise: My review feature in Cycling Weekly magazine

I regularly write articles for different cycling publications. Sometimes it's on-line, other times it's for print magazines. Some are feature interviews, some are short news pieces, long form stories about people or places, and then I review gear and bicycles. This was a review I did on the Boardman SLR 8.9 women's road bike. I saw it go to Cycling Weekly on-line shortly after I wrote the piece, and then I forgot about it and focussed on the next item I was writing. So it was a nice surprise to open the magazine today and see the review in the printed version of Cycling Weekly. Even though the magazine only has a week's longevity before folks go out and buy the next issue, I get more excited to see my article in the magazine, than I do when it is on-line. I think it's related to the fact that the magazine is available in WH Smiths and Tesco, where folks can go out and buy it. There's something quite satisfying about a piece of work that you did being on a shelf in a shop. And today it was even nicer to just suddenly see my words and my photo shining off the page back at me as I thumbed through Cycling Weekly. It's the sort of thing that makes my day! By the way, the Boardman SLR is a good ride and I definitely recommend it.

Photo of the day - 28: Countdown to my clarinet exam

I'll have this tune in my head right up to exam day!

I am still getting my act together to take my first clarinet exam in just under a month's time. It shouldn't be too hard, as this is just Grade 1. I am not a complete beginner, but I have never taken exams - just been self-taught, playing various tunes and working through my Klosé method book. But earlier this year I decided to formalise my skills as a clarinet player, and work through the grades. The above is one of the tunes I plan to play. Minuets are always quite fun. When playing, I picture couples in a room dressed in Baroque costumes, dancing a waltz and giving each other the eye like in the Dangerous Liaisons film. They probably won't want to dance to my playing, but I like to let my imagination wander! The reality is there won't be anyone dancing, but just an ever observant examiner to make sure I'm tonguing, slurring and fingering in the right place! And then I'll get on with some clarinet playing!

The other tunes on my list are Mama Paquita, and Cantilena.  My biggest challenge, aside from not getting too nervous when playing, is to have the CD player ready at the right place. In the absence of a live pianist to play along with me, the London College of Music board allow us to use backing tapes for songs. Hopefully everything will come together on the day. So I will sign off here and get back to my practicing - both in playing the songs and in pressing the play button!