Catching the cycling bug

Until not long ago, Czechs used to ride only two or three types of bikes: either the Czechoslovak-made Favorit or Eska, or the legendary “Ukraina” bike, produced, as the title suggests, by our eastern neighbour. With the establishment of the free market, however, Czechs have gone wild about bikes and cycling has become a big business…

Photo: CTK

Unlike the Dutch or the Germans, who use their bikes primarily as a means of transport, many Czechs view their bikes as something of a status symbol, just like their car… It may have to do with the fact that riding a bike in the city is a dangerous activity in this country, as most drivers still believe that cyclists have no place on the road. So cycling is mostly reserved for the weekends and holidays, when thousands of Czechs head off to the countryside to stretch their legs and show off their equipment to their neighbours.

After many years of pressure, I finally convinced my boyfriend to get a new bike this spring. And to my surprise (since he is not much of a sportsman) he too has fallen prey to the cycling industry, suddenly discovering that he can’t do without all those special gadgets, such as a map holder, cycle computer or a pair of cycling gloves… I recently spotted a bike catalogue lying on the kitchen table and discovered, to my surprise, that there are still many things he is missing – for instance those shiny elastic cycling pants…

Photo: CTK

I myself also have to resist the cycling craze and the only thing I have really got addicted to is my cycle computer. I admit I get slightly nervous when I set on a trip without it and can’t tell the distance that I managed to cover. I also have a bright yellow helmet (not that I wanted this particular colour, but it was the only one in the X-small size), in which I look like a huge lemon… Recently I also got a special fluorescent vest so now I look completely ridiculous, but I am definitely visible on the road…

To test my boyfriend’s new bike, we went on a ride along the Vltava River the other day to escape the crowded and noisy city. Unfortunately, hundreds of other people got the exact same idea and the two lane cycling path was jammed all the way from the National Theatre to Zbraslav, with no chance to overtake the crowd in front of you… The following weekend we chose to ride a bit further from the city – to South Bohemia - but the train was so packed with cyclists we barely managed to get on…

But despite cyclists infesting the country, there are still regions (especially the more hilly ones) where you can go for kilometres without meeting a single person. And for me, coming back home on Sunday night with smudges of oil from the chainwheel on my legs and a streak of mud on my back (there is no mudguard on my bike) means that I have had a good weekend…