what do you think of the CTC

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Talk about stereotyping.

I'm 60 i do not go slow when cycling,do not have a beard, only wear sandals on holiday(not with socks)have no intention on rides at stopping at cafes and pubs and will not be joining the CTC...... period.

 

[buggi]

just found this thread. I think BC is more about promoting and getting young people onto bikes but i never hear what they are doing to stick up for us when the government go off on some crappy cycle improvement idea, or try to introduce some crappy law about cycle lanes or helmets etc, it seems to be the CTC that pick up the batton. Never hear of BC supporting individual cases either. Might just be a perception thing but for this reason i support CTC. they will need to lower membership fees or add some goodies if they are going to compete with BC membership. Bottom line...if something happened to me I'd rather be with CTC's legal team

 

[amir]

I am a CTC member. On balance I support them but I was really disappointed with their support of the NiceWay Code. As a regular commuter and weekend cyclist, I value the campaigning aspect but the NWC support was a big error. The mag is okay as far as cycling mags go. I did go on a local group ride in the early days on my return to cycling but they were much too relaxed - not compatible with a family life! In my area there are several other possibilities for group rides.

 

[beeblemaster]

For me the CTC experience has been great!

I started riding with them just under 12 months ago. On my first ride, I did find the pace a little slower than I'd been used to (thinking it was easy....), but as a beginner, I'd done nowhere near the kind of distance we did that day of 50 miles (I was used to about 15) - and it proved hard work in the end going that distance, but everyone was friendly, supportive and I wasn't left behind at any point. I kept going back and that attitude (welcoming, supportive) has been consistent throughout, and after a few rides I joined up.

On occasion a ride can be a little slow, it all depends on who's leading, but there is the opportunity to split up the group for a faster or slower pace if necessary.

I've got access to two CTC groups on my doorstep and recently been going out with this other group. They draw a large crowd and split up into group rides based on speed. You choose which group you go in, and if the pace of the group is a little too much or too little, swap groups at the cafe stop.

With the CTC, I can go out every Saturday and Sunday and ride at least 40 miles (summer months 50-80), paying no more money than I've paid for my membership.

I would agree it does need an image boost and needs to be more dynamic if it's to survive. I'm 37, by the way, shave regularly and I'm stunningly handsome.

 

[Albert]

I am not a member - National Clarion is my club - but I like the CTC and think that it has a role to play and should be given every support. It is a bit staid as far as I can see, but to me that is a strength not a weakness.

 

[snorri]

It does bugger all for the Right to Ride reps.

There is certainly little co-ordination of RtR effort, which I find disappointing, and few members seem willing to engage with the RtR section.

 

[Hill Wimp]

I am not a member, BC is my choice, however i was a bit shocked to see the thread on here about CTC paying the legal fees for a cyclist who had gone over the stop line. Without wishing to go into that case as the thread itself is good enough, i think that is a very poor choice of how to spend subscribers money. This would put some people off joining as there are bigger and better cases that need supporting.

 

[srw]

Is that not the CDF?

Yes, and it was a specific fundraiser too.

 

[snorri]

I am not a member, BC is my choice, however i was a bit shocked to see the thread on here about CTC paying the legal fees for a cyclist who had gone over the stop line. Without wishing to go into that case as the thread itself is good enough, i think that is a very poor choice of how to spend subscribers money..

That sounds like a distorted version of this case, perhaps some confusion?
http://www.ctc.org.uk/blog/rhiawest...und-supporting-one-cyclist’s-challenge-of-fpn

 

[snorri]

Whichever way CTC tries to spin it, the cyclist broke the law. It is irrelevant that the ASL was taken up by a car (and the claim it was there illegally is open to dispute, as it was already in there when he arrived and he didnt see it enter the box).
CDF does itself no favours by entertaining such a frivolous appeal, which won't even set a precedent if it were to be upheld.

It seeems you were there, so I will bow to your superior knowledge.

 

[Jezston]

I was at a point of joining when the whole John Snow Daily Mail riding like a knob thing happened. (FYI the dm followed c4 news presenter and ctc 'figurehead'(?) John Snow riding like a total idiot)

The CTCs reaction to it, and John Snows complete lack of acceptance that there was anything wrong with what he did and no apology meant I would not join.

 

[srw]

Whichever way CTC tries to spin it, the cyclist broke the law. It is irrelevant that the ASL was taken up by a car (and the claim it was there illegally is open to dispute, as it was already in there when he arrived and he didnt see it enter the box).

CDF does itself no favours by entertaining such a frivolous appeal, which won't even set a precedent if it were to be upheld.

Oh, for heaven's sake. The law, in this as in so much, is an utter ass. The specific police person went directly against their force's policy. If the CTC can get some very cheap publicity, fantastic.

 

[snorri]

Looks as if the prosecution case was not as strong as some would have had us believe.

http://www.ctc.org.uk/news/cps-drops-fixed-penalty-notice-prosecution

 

[Crankarm]

I used to be a CTC member and, like dellzeqq, I used to be a Council member.

CTC was a good organisation with a campaigning pedigree but it is now more interested in being a contractor for government and not biting the hand that feeds it. CTC likes to think that it is a "player" politically, but it has been eclipsed by other organisations and has lost its standing in Whitehall. The CDF (which is not part of CTC) and LCC have done more for cyclists than CTC in recent years.

CTC sees its membership as a cash cow and little else. It does bugger all for the member groups and its Right to Ride reps.

My view of CTC Council is that few of them were capable of independent thought and most of them simply went along with what National Office suggested as that was "the way it had always been done". It was interesting how many of them had a background in local government...

CTC has a couple of good staffers, such as Chris Juden (who should be digitised and saved for future generations), but others, such as Roger Geffen, are high profile but out of their depth and likely to do more damage than good.

The local members groups are the lifeblood of CTC and some of them are thriving - but that's because of their own efforts, rather than as a result of anything done by the national organisation.

Unless CTC realises the fundamental flaw in its current behaviour and goes back to being first and foremost a member-led organisation fighting for the rights of cyclists, it will just fade into irrelevance...

Blimey, you changed your tune. I remember you were quite obnoxious to me when ages ago I posted something similar but not as eloquent to what you have written above and I knew it before you. Ha! I always thought Geffen rather useless and certainly out of his depth. The only person I thought any good was Chris Juden. When road racing was in it's infancy in the UK the CTC tried to get it stopped where as in Belgium, France etc it was encouraged. I was just sorry I gave 7 years of my hard earned cash to the CTC. Their membership renewal process was awful as well. I was LCC member of 10 years before the current incumbent leader and am now BC which I am pleased about as BC seem to be right where it is happening, more than CTC ever were.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

....The CDF (which is not part of CTC) ....

Brutally edited and old - it was correct at time of the post - but the CPS was set up by CTC as an independent charity is now linked (since November). Hard to see them as discrete charities...

The Cyclists' Defence Fund
CDF is an independent charity set up in 2001 by CTC to fight significant legal cases involving cycling and cyclists. Since its inception, its remit has expanded to cover all aspects of cycling and the law. CDF and CTC became officially linked in November.