Literary Genius alive and
well and here in Bath!
We have some fab winners in our very own OSCARS.
In the latest John's Bikes Short Story competition, created to complement the BathLit Festival, the standard was so high that we just couldn't choose and had to have two under 18 winners as well as the adult one.
Bike guru William Fotheringham presented the well-earned prizes at our sponsored event last month.
And the winners are...
Over 18s Colin French from Warminster with his story "Orange Chain"
Orange chain, muddy rims remind me of the last ride, the start of another adventure. A look at the oil-can on the shelf makes it possible again.The oil-can is a friend to the bike like the bath to the rider.
...and...
Under 18s Violet Wilshire from Bristol with her story "Oi, get off my bike!"
Little blackbird rode her favourite bike in the forest. Two snails called Pinkie and Bob came down a tree and jumped on the handlebars. This made the blackbird fall right on top of a magical Bath pig. The pig sneezed, snails flew off, the blackbird went home for a bath.
...and...
Under 18s runner up
Leo McCurdie from a village outside Bath with his story "Bristol to Bath"
Once upon a bike I was on Clifton Suspension Bridge ready to start my biggest ride ever!! Bristol to Bath.
Oh no, what's going to happen? Is Dad mad?
Here I go. Bye!
Puff, puff, pedal, pedal. I can see Bath. Yes, nearly there. Done it!
Fancy your chances?
We're doing it again. Have a look here
Blackburn Pumps SALE!!!
Blackburn Airstick, was £19.99 NOW £12.99
- Slim, compact mini pump optimised for high pressure tyres
- Tough aluminium barrel is anodised black for a long lasting finish and great looks
- Dual stroke internals pump air on the push and pull stroke to get your tyre up to pressure quickly
- PowerGrip pivoting handle is ergonomically shaped for comfort and has soft rubber in-moulded sections for excellent grip to aid fast pumping
- TwistGrip III locking head is suitable for Presta / Schrader valves and suits all bikes
- Frame mount included for easy mounting to your frame
- Capable of pumping up to 160 psi / 11.2 bar if you are!
- Weight: 160 grams
- A true Blackburn classic updated for the twenty first century
- No-quibble Blackburn lifetime warranty
Blackburn Mammoth, was £19.99 NOW £12.99
- A true mountain bike icon, filling tyres quickly and painlessly
- Mini pump with a high volume barrel and long pumping stroke, ideal for mountain bike and other high volume tyres
- PowerGrip pivoting handle is ergonomically shaped for comfort and has soft rubber in-moulded sections for excellent grip to aid fast pumping
- TwistGrip III locking head is suitable for Presta / Schrader valves and suits all bikes
- Frame mount included for easy mounting to your frame
- Tough aluminium barrel is anodised black for a long lasting finish and great looks
- Weight: 157 grams
- Maximum pressure 90 psi
No-quibble Blackburn lifetime warranty
Come & visit us
This week's lucky winner...
Ron Humphries is the latest lucky winner of our £50 voucher - and that's just for setting foot in the shop! How easy is that?
And it couldn't have been a more timely win.
Ron is renovating a gorgeous old 1950s Hetchins bike.
The very last thing he needed to make it perfect - and was saving up for - was a traditional Carradice Saddle Bag. We got one in specially for him. And now we're selling them in the shop for any other high quality types out there who like to pedal in style.
Talking about cycling - put 24th June in your diary
We're delighted to be sponsoring the Bath Cycling Summit - of course, how fitting. It's a mini conference designed to promote cycling in our hilly city, organised by Bath Cycling Campaign and B&NES council. Timed to coincide with Bike Week, it will be chaired by Don Foster. We'll tell you more nearer the time but for now, write these details down somewhere safe -
Bath Cycling Summit
24th June 2011
The Bath Royal Literary & Scientific Institution
Queen Square
Have a look at www.bathcyclingsummit.org.uk
Links - Bike Week www.bikeweek.org.uk www.bathcyclingcampaign.org.uk
Two Tunnels Project Route Walk
To mark the surfacing of the Linear Park section from Devonshire Tunnel to the Network Rail bridge, a walk of the Two Tunnels route will take place on Saturday 26 March 2011.
Starting: from the northern end of Linear Park, close to the Royal Oak pub, south of Windsor Bridge on the Lower Bristol Road, at 10am (nb – it will not be possible to go through either of the tunnels, so we shall be walking over the top of Combe Down).
Finishing: at Midford, around 1.30 pm, from where buses run back to Bath at just after the hour from outside the Hope and Anchor pub.
Distance: 4 miles (please don sensible footwear)
Everyone welcome, so please pass this message on to anyone that might be interested.”
www.twotunnels.org.uk
The Laughing Cyclist
Bath Comedy Festival is just around the corner, starting on April 1st - no, no, really it is! With April idiots fooling around all over the city's streets, it's going to be a fundeelicious ten days of sniggering, chuckling, howlers and belly-clutching. So there.
From stand up to mime, street theatre to farce, cartoons to silent movies, buskers to celebrities, these magic festivities celebrate everything about the fantastic art of making people laugh.
And we're sponsoring it too! What generous chaps we are. Specially when it's fun.
We're in charge of The White Wine Arts Trail, affectionately known as TWATT.
On Sunday 3rd April there'll be a legendary Routemaster bus touring town, packed full of fun. And white wine. Take one of our two tours -1pm or 3.30 - and get on and off wherever you like at various arty venues, quaffing the jolly old vino all the way. How very posh!
The driver will be Peter Hendy, head of Transport for London and keeping the passengers in order will be our cheeky Bus Conductor the marvellous Arthur Smith, megastar of screen and wireless.
Get your tickets here - www.bathcomedy.com/whats-on?id=5
Big new cycle track up the smoke
The spectacular Velodrome in London is now open and ready for next year's Olympics - maybe you saw it on the telly?
Go here www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC UK LONDON2012 L2012 SIGNUPSPLASH and you can get yourself some tickets.
Or go here www.bbc.co,uk/news/uk-12301465 for a for a proper upclose nose at it and a super duper slide show of its luscious insides.
And here www.london2012.comwebcams/velodrome.php to see it being built.
Kids + Bikes + Computers... What's not to love?
We've got great big bucketfuls of bike computers we can't wait to give away. Yes! GIVE AWAY! FREE!
Just stick them on your handlebars and they'll tell you how fast, how far, how many calories, what you had for tea...ok, we lied about that bit... but they'll do all sorts of whizzy wonderful things.
And all you have to do to get yours is come in the shop. Oh, and then use your brain a bit (you know, that's the most important bit in cycling) to tell us, in no more than 10 words, why John's Bikes is the BEST cycle shop in town. That can't be difficult because it's TRUE!
Write your answer on a bit of paper, with your name, age, school and your parents' home telephone number and hand it in at the shop. What are you waiting for?
More wonderful ways to have fun
We've got some more brilliant new routes for you to get on your bike and have a good cruise about in and around Bath. Try them out and tell us what you liked, what you'd like more of, and any comments after you've tried them out for us. Thanks, guinea piglets.
Click here to view & download our Cycle Routes
COMPETITION
Sharpen your quills, you budding Dickenses...
We've a new competition for all you wordy wizards out there, to win £250 worth of lovely spending tokens at John's.
So sharpen up your literary brain cells and enter an original short story - just 50 words long - which includes the words BATH and BIKE. You can have a title of up to 6 words as well. You've got till the end of July, so start getting all creative now...
There's more information here - www.johnsbikes.co.uk/competition
ANOTHER COMPETITION
It's a sign of the times
One of John's favourite holiday snaps is this
Have you seen any similar, or better?
Send us your photos of weird, wonderful or just downright stupid 'Get off your bike" signs.
And Finally...Upgrade your ride Get 10% Back
A bike is a great way to get around, stay fit and healthy and have a fun time doing it. To make the ride an even better experience, Trek and Bontrager have teamed up to offer a range of FREE accessories to those of you buying a new bike.
Check the Link....www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/upgrade_your_ride#town
