Flying down Derby Road hill for my 9am lecture, I thank God that I have my bike. The number 34 bus is stationary in the huge queue of traffic leading to Campus and having missed my alarm I would have never made it to my lecture by catching the bus! My bike has saved me from many embarrassing late lecture walk-ins and it’s definitely cheaper than buying a bus pass! So, whilst you may be thinking that cycling onto campus is only for the fitness fanatics and exercise freaks, on the contrary, cycling is for the people who would prefer the extra fifteen minutes in bed!
The Benefits of Cycling
Cycling is the perfect form of exercise if you are the type of person who never has time to go to the gym. Hoping on your bike and cycling to your destination is an effective way of burning calories, toning up and saving money on the bus. Half an hour of cycling will on average burn around 300 calories. It’s great for keeping fit and due to its low impact on joints cycling is a great alternative exercise for injured athletes, not to mention the fact that it will help give you that Beyonce bum!
The City of Nottingham has numerous cycle routes as does University Park, maps of which you can find on the Nottingham City Council website, so access to anywhere is relatively easy. From anywhere in Lenton you can get onto University Park within 15 minutes, and if you’re based in Halls, you will never need to leave more than 10 minutes to get anywhere if you’re cycling! Both the City and the University are dedicated to the encouragement of cycling; the University’s Ucycle scheme has been a big success. This is a scheme run by the Uni for the Uni where staff and students can hire bikes which also come with a lock and a helmet. Alternatively, there are many shops around Nottingham where you can find yourself a good deal, most notably Aladdins Bike Shop on Ilkstone Road (Lenton), which has a second hand bike sale every Friday.
If you are thinking of taking up cycling as a sport, the University’s Cycling Club: NUBike caters to all abilities as well as disciplines including on-road, downhill and cross-country. Another option is the Universities Triathlon Club which has its own beginner racing bikes that are leant out to members who show a particularly keen interest. So whether you want to take up cycling purely as an alternative mode of transport or as a sport, University is a great place to start.
Edited by Faiza Peeran