One of my career highlights so far - working in the content team at British Cycling. Meeting many of my cycling heroes (all friendly) proved to be a bonus, as did holding several Olympic gold medals (theirs, not mine - although I did ride off with one in my shorts pocket once).
The work itself was full of purpose and creative stretching. Akin to the 'secret squirrel' track bike development, but with a little less sweating, I made a significant contribution to the data-driven creative content testing and learning.
The core mandate was to spread the appeal of cycling as a recreational activity, and all the content I produced was towards that aim.
Much of the creativity activity centred around the promotion of the City Ride events, where whole city centres would be cleared of traffic to make way for thousands of smiling cyclists. Great for families, great for communities, and great for me in gaining experience of promoting and producing large-scale participation events.
Great for families, great for communities, and great for me in gaining experience of promoting and producing large-scale participation events.
Of course, it helped that everything was about the bike for this role, but what really captivated me was the scope I had to grow and flex my creative muscles across the disciplines.
Just as I love to switch from the mud and knobbly tires to the stealth and slickness of a road bike, I enjoyed the variety of project work, from social strategy to video work and article writing.
Five tips for bike maintenance
Great places to ride MTB in the UK
Ten tips for getting into BMX
Easy ways to customise your bicycle
Curiosity
Look beyond the obvious
Setting
At the violet hour, when the eyes and back turn upward from the desk, when the human engine waits.
Location
April is the cruellest month, breeding lilacs out of the dead land, mixing memory and desire, stirring dull roots with spring rain.
Simplicity
Keep it simple, stupid (KISS)
Setting
Madame sosostris, famous clairvoyante, had a bad cold, nevertheless is known to be the wisest woman in europe.
Location
Winter kept us warm, covering earth in forgetful snow, feeding a little life with dried tubers.
Growth
Nocturne
Setting
The chair she sat in, like a burnished throne, glowed on the marble, where the glass.
Location
Doubled the flames of sevenbranched candelabra reflecting light upon the table as the glitter of her jewels rose to meet it.