How cycling changed my life...
Jane Ridley, 51, from the Isle of Wight overcame a childhood disability to conquer the UK’s most iconic of rides…
HOW WAS LIFE BEFORE THE BIKE?
“I was born without a fibula in my right leg and a two-inch difference in length. At one point foot amputation was discussed. In my teens new surgical procedures enabled me to start cycling. I found the pivot of the pedal could do what my stiff right ankle couldn’t so I could still enjoy the wind in my hair.”
HOW DID YOU GET INTO CYCLING?
“After the initial surgery and a year spent on crutches I bought my first proper bike, a Peugeot Premier road bike. It had shifters on the down tube, it was blue and I paid £120 for it. I loved it. I lived in the borders of Scotland at the time and I used to cycle from Carlisle to the borders (20 miles) regularly. When I got to the age of 35, my leg was causing me so much pain that I returned to the hospital and I was told, ‘You won’t have that leg when you’re 50, so you may as well let me amputate it’. I sought a second opinion from a surgeon in Bristol called Mr Atkins, who said that he could do a series of operations that would help.”
WHERE HAS CYCLING TAKEN YOU?
“Surgeons have threatened to amputate my foot twice, so after the last threat I decided that after the surgery to help me keep my foot I would test its metal by attempting to cycle from Land’s End to John O’ Groats. I set off on my Specialized Allez Sport, on 1 June 2009 and I arrived at John O’Groats on the 23rd, (986.4 miles). I had no support vehicle and I fixed all of my punctures myself. For the last 100 miles I had to change gear with my left hand only as I had developed repetitive strain syndrome in my right thumb, but that didn’t stop me. I loved it.”
WHAT REWARDS DOES CYCLING BRING YOU?
“Cycling makes me feel free, happy and alive. It makes me feel able to move, whereas when I’m on my legs, because of the constant pain, I feel stuck, trapped and frustrated. It makes me feel powerful as well, as I am currently cycling 100 miles to work and back, which takes a diesel-guzzling car off the road and therefore out of the environment. And it means I get to work feeling on top of the world and ready for whatever the day brings.”
Sustrans is the charity making it easier for people to walk and cycle. Join us on our journey; sustrans.org.uk
GET IN TOUCH...
Has cycling changed your life? Email us at cyclingplus@immediate.co.uk
“AFTER THE LAST AMPUTATION THREAT I DECIDED I WOULD ATTEMPT LE JO G”