The Club

History of the BMC

The Bicycle Moaning Collective was born early 2008 when a rag tag bunch of drinkers approaching middle age decided that they wanted to don some Lycra (some more than others) and cycle to Paris. Not much has changed other than more trips to the continent and more drinking to celebrate, plan and moan about cycling.

We’ve been organising group cycle rides since 2009, following the basic challenge of covering 300 miles in 3 days. With London as our starting point we have ridden to La Rochelle, Paris, Amsterdam, La Rochelle, Cologne, Luxembourg and most recently back to La Rochelle. From these rides the Bicycle Moaning Collective was born, a ‘virtual cycle club’ for cyclists who want to ride if, when and how they want. Unlike other cycle clubs we don’t have any strict club rules other than the guiding principle: never leave anyone behind.

It was the ethos of stronger riders helping weaker (rather than racing off up the road), team work, value for money, inclusiveness and a sense of adventure that our riders hadn’t experienced since they were kids riding their bikes. It has kept them coming back year after year, bringing along their friends or just someone that they once spoke to about cycling, and has led to our numbers growing year on year.

The Charter

We don’t believe in having rules or regulations (though we do like some of these ones) but when forming this collective we wanted to make sure people knew what we stood for. So here it goes:

This is how we roll….

  • Never leave anyone behind
  • …unless agreed by a handshake and eye contact (or they ask you to!)
  • Ride when you want to, don’t when you don’t
  • Don’t talk about your Strava KOMs/QOMs unless asked
  • Welcome all riders
  • Be open to all cycling disciplines
  • Be serious about cycling, not a serious cyclist
  • Enjoy the ride
  • Help others on the road
  • Push yourself (if you want to)
  • Team spirit over competitive spirit
  • …you’ll know when it’s time for the latter
  • Wheel suckers welcome, just make sure you ask first
  • A nod and a wave to fellow cyclists always feels good

2 thoughts on “The Club

  1. I am the director of a local children’s charity. We have been sponsoring cyclist for Surrey 100 and 46 since their inception. We have now a number of unused spots for the race next year and want to see if your club wanted to have a group ride together as a team. We have 13 spaces for the 46 mile race and 14 spaces for the 100 mile race. There would be no fundraising requirement just a fixed coat of £40 for the 46 miler and £75 for the 100 miler. thanks

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