Alistair Shutt

A close up of a temporary gear cable repair comprising two wires joined by a wire clamp on a red bike frame. A blue repair stand is partly pictured, behind and beneath the bike.

Proof that hoarding random bike bits for 20 years pays off: half an old gear cable + forgotten wire clamp = school run saved (and still on two wheels).

A family’s orange longtail e-cargo bike (Radwagen4?) with yellow and green helmets parked in front of blue railings of a playground in Whitley Bay, North East England, April 2025.

Colours beat high-vis

20mph driving feels slow at first but you soon get used to it

20mph roads: more of us get from A to B in safety, at any age, however we like.

30mph: saves some a few minutes, but inflates car use, wasting resources, turning communities in to car parks and inhibiting safe & free movement for all.

Carrera folding electric bike adapted for carrying a passenger with a cushion and foot pegs

Spotted a new SUV at leisure centre #cargobike

Three metal cycle boxes - located on mossy slabs, between a concrete subway and residential properties, at Wallsend Metro station, North East England. Pictured in April 2025 with their electronic locking systems removed. Two show a sticker "I'm a smart cycle locker. There’s no charge to use me.”

“I’m a smart cycle locker” - now decommissioned, with “future-proofed” locks removed.

A covered walkway structure with a banner reading ‘Celebrating Fifty Years of Milton Keynes (MK50)’ from 2017, partially covered by a more recent yellow sign stating ‘Pedestrians do not have Priority.’ Below, people walk towards an entrance with a ‘Welcome’ sign. A glass-fronted shopping centre is in the background, with vehicles parked alongside.

Welcome to Milton Keynes. Celebrating 50 years. Pedestrians do not have priority.

Still frame from bike ride video, with vantage point of rider. An apologetic “oopsie wave” is made ahead by an SUV driver positioned on a parallel crossing in UK, where drivers must yield for crossing pedestrians and cyclists.

Oh hi, nice to meet you.

Self-service scales at J Sainsbury’s supermarket, weighing a pair of orange woolly fingerless gloves, recognised on screen as “JS Carrots Loose”, with a picture of actual carrots displayed above. The sidebar details 0.026 kg, 0.69 £/kg, £0.02 to pay.

Self-service scales at J Sainsbury’s supermarket, weighing a bike helmet, recognised on screen as “JS Red Onions Loose”, with a picture of actual red onions displayed above. The sidebar details 0.249kg, 0.95 £/kg, £0.24 to pay.

Grocery shopping with children

Brompton Bike Hire locker location at Peterborough Station in eastern England, a short rail trip from London (c50 mins)

Map of numerous Brompton Bike Hire locations around the UK, but with a coverage gap in North East England

Please bring more bike rental spots to the North East @bromptonbicycle.bsky.social

Most kids want to cycle more – let’s make it happen! 🚲

5 year old's drawing of a longtail cargo bike, detailing its bell, kickstands, passenger seating at rear and chunky wheels

5 year old's drawing of a cat in pen on a yellow sticky note, detailing it's stripes, ears, whiskers, legs and maybe a tail. The name "Doris" appears above the cat.

Gone are the rainbows, but here come the bikes and cats #drawing #5yearsold #cat #cargobike

Thermal image of a child in warmer reds making a heart shape with hands against cooler wall in blues & purples in background

Thermal image of warm child in yellows and reds making temporary prints that show up purple on a cooler wall in blue using warm hands

Thermal image of drinking cup or glass held by a warm hand in yellows and reds, marked 27.6C catching a thin stream of chilled water, marked 5.1C and coloured blue

Thermal image of a red / yellow warm kettle / hot teapot - marked 87.4C - against a cooler wall in purple, marked 16.9C

…but for now we’re mainly playing with it

Thermal image showing a cold patch on ceiling in blue, marked 11.5C near a warm radiator in red, marked 31.8C, the min and max shown on a colour gradient shown as a legend on right

The plan was to use the thermal camera to find and sort loft insulation gaps

Insulated heat pump pipes in a garden in northern England with two freezer bags attached to anti-freeze valves—one remains dry, while the other contains water, confirming a leak.

Night-time thermal image of heat pump pipes in a garden in northern England. A faulty anti-freeze valve is visible at the bottom, with a bright red drip indicating a water leak against the cooler background.

Heat pump keeps us toasty 24/7, but a slow pressure drop had me aimlessly hunting for leaks with a thermal camera. Engineer suspected a faulty antifreeze valve - leak easily confirmed with a simple freezer bag! #HeatPump

Close up of display on a Tern GSD cargo bike showing a reading of 3000 miles.

Well I quite enjoyed that - bring on the next 1000mi of mundane errands, grocery trips, school runs & child taxi drops. #tern #cargobike

A street in North Tyneside, North East England ridden with potholes and broken tarmac outside a well attended school.

When it’s time to resurface our school roads will you consult with families & the community on best use of funds and opportunities to design safer streets, or will you just slap down some more tarmac? @ntcouncilteam.bsky.social

2008 mountain bike pictured at bottom of Collywell Bay access ramp, in North East England. Behind, the rising tide covers large rocks as it approaches a slim beach and sea defences protecting cliff top houses in Seaton Sluice.

Collywell Bay - took the steep but rideable path to the beach. Mostly rocks, shingle and seaweed amid patches of sand. Enjoyed a cold dip, but on a rising tide with menace so I didn’t hang about. Wary of submerged rocks and currents. Likely good for rock pools at low tide. #ncn1 #biketothebeach

Our first social ride of 2025 is this Friday!

🗓️ Friday 31st January
⏰ 18:30 ride
📍 Spanish City plaza > Tynemouth > Whitley Bay via NCN1
🍻 Drinks location tbc by popular demand!
💡 Remember bike lights!

We're a friendly bunch, and it's a slow, socially-paced ride so please do pop along! Pls share!

Two officials at the 2025 UK Cold Water Swimming Championships look out across the glistening cold water, bunting and competitors at South London’s Tooting Bec Lido, the largest in outdoor lido in the UK.

Swimmers making waves at the 2025 SLSC UK Cold Water Swim Championships

Surfers and walkers enjoying the weekend winter sun and waves at Longsands Beach in North Tyneside, North East England

Perhaps 2025 is the year to learn..?!

Surfer riding a bike with attached board on new, but disappointingly thin, section of segregated cycleway from Cullercoats to Longsands Beach in North Tyneside, North East England

I’m not a surfer but they’re masters at making it look awesome.

But yes, time to extend the pavement parking ban beyond London. Slabs on our street also destroyed by vehicles. Puts kids off scooting unless I let them ride on smooth road surface.

A peloton of riders slipstreaming?

Followed a driver doing <20mph in a 20. Was lovely.

Would love to see these in UK towns & cities - micro mobility schemes only supporting adult / traffic-confident riders currently.

Sunny windy winter’s day at Whitley Bay, North East England, with walkers, dogs and bikes (incl a cargo bike & tandem) pictured in a scene stretching from cycle path/ promenade, over beach, to the dramatic waves and sea spray toward a bright horizon.

Happy New Year

Red Bike Bicycle Christmas Tree Decoration, available from notonthehighstreet.com

Rented a car for Xmas/NY after doing without for much of 2024 — was useful out of town but made us less active and seemed a burden back home. Glad to be back on 2 wheels again. #carfree

17-year-long Scottish study of 82,000+ adults finds commuting by bike reduces your risk of:
• early death
• hospitalisation for any reason
• cardiovascular disease
• cancer mortality
• treatment for mental health problems.

Yeah, but those LTNs and bike lanes are *really* annoying.

Change can be fast or slow. If still driving a fossil fuel car, you’re not in the fast lane. But that opens a chance to rethink the next step. For my young family, an electric #cargobike bridges the gap—and it’s more fun than driving. I now wonder, do we even need an EV?