TFL Cycle Challenge 2011

You may have noticed the 2011 Tour de France underway over the last few weeks but here at Greenwich there’s been a big old collective cycle taking part in the form of the TFL Cycle Challenge. The challenge is now over and the University of Greenwich team has clocked up an impressive 8,454 miles! This is the equivalent of burning 422,700 calories or 1,409 cupcakes and an estimated carbon dioxide saving of 4.227 tonnes.

There were some outstanding individual efforts but all 40 members of staff who logged their miles can be proud to have made a significant contribution to the total score and amassing an average of 211 miles per person! In the 11-50 members category the University of Greenwich finished in 11th position out of 152 teams. Barclays took the top prize in the category with a rather impressive 15,278 miles, quite a feat but I'm sure they will feel the force of the University of Greenwich breathing down their neck next year.

The top ten riders in the University of Greenwich team were:

1st Yellow Jersey (General Classification) Winner: Matt Prichard from CMS - 672 miles
2nd Green Jersey (Sprint Points) Winner: Tom Barnes Deputy Vice Chancellor - 604 miles
3rd Polka-dot Jersey (Queen of the Mountains) winner: Kat Thorne from Sustainability - 573 miles
4th White Jersey (Best young rider!) winner: Neil Garrod Deputy Vice Chancellor - 512 miles
5th: John Bailey from Sustainability - 503 miles
6th: Simon Charlesworth from Accommodation -477 miles
7th: Simon Walker from the EDU - 384 miles
8th: Adele Brooks from FM – 347 miles
9th: Justine Cooper from Architecture & Construction – 337 miles
10th: Gesche Heubner from Architecture & Construction – 309 miles

Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race. - H. G. Wells

Bike Week and TFL Cycle Challenge

With the sun shining this summer we've been going bike mad here at the University of Greenwich! Last week was bike week and to celebrate we organised a whole mutitude of events including a 'bike bus' for new cyclists to commute into work with a more experienced rider, staff led bike rides and we also bought new cycle repair equipment for the three campuses. You will now find a track pump, puncture repair kit and essential allan keys and spanners at each campus gatehouse.

At the Medway Campus Keith Tomlins took a break from his work at the Natural Resources Institute to lead a ride around  St Mary's Island taking in the local sights and a little local history too. Amongst the keen cyclists on the ride there was a Mr Mark Johnson who is the Transport Strategy and Initiatives Manager from Medway Council. Mark was keen to point out how the local council has a number of schemes to support cycling in the Medway region, including locally led rides around the area.

The medway riders in front of the famous red tomato!

The photo shows Upnor Castle in the background and the famous giant tomato. On closer inspection it appeared to be a bouy! Everyone on the ride commented about how they enjoyed the mixture of cycling and history and we shall be looking to organise more rides like this soon.

In other cycling related news the University of Greenwich has been storming up the league table in the TFL Cycle Challenge and is now in 4th position for the 11-50 members category. So far 50 cycling staff have clocked up over 4,000 miles. Our target is to beat last year's effort of 10,500 miles and with a few long rides by staff members this weekend we could be on track to beat our prevoious year's record!

TFL Cycle Challenge 2010

TFL Cycle Challenge

The TFL Cycle Challenge has now come to an end and the University of Greenwich staff have impressively logged over 10,500 miles over the course of the month. This mileage covered on bicycle amounts to nearly three tonnes of CO2 saved and over 400,000 calories burnt or the equivalent of around 1,500 mars bars!

In the University of Greenwich team the top riders were dominated by members of the Sustainability Team and the Vice Chancellor’s Office. With Neil Garrod and Tom Barnes training for their ride from Brussels the miles were being racked up between them thick and fast although they didn’t quite manage to beat the combined mileage of the Sustainability Team.

The Top 5 riders within the University are as follows:
1. John Bailey (Sustainability Projects Officer) – 716 miles
2. Neil Garrod (Deputy Vice Chancellor Resources) – 698 miles
3. Kat Thorne (Sustainable Development Manager) – 630 miles
4. Tom Barnes (Deputy Vice Chancellor Research & Enterprise) – 625 miles
5. Adele Brookes (Architectural Assistant) – 624 miles

The Challenge brought together staff members from all three campuses and a wide spread across the University departments, some of whom enjoyed perks such as a free breakfast during bike week and a scenic cycle ride along the River Thames. There are now discussions of how to get even more people on their bikes to ride to work and future events to promote sustainable travel options across the University as a whole.

Tom Barnes & Neil Garrod on their bikes

As well as the University’s achievement together there are lots of individual stories to take note of through the Cycle Challenge. Several members of staff tried cycling to work for the first time and many have decided to continue to do this from now on. Tim Brown has now stated his intention to cycle to Greenwich from Kilburn every day as a direct result of finding his bum on the saddle through the cycle challenge.