Our mission
Glasgow Tandem Club is a friendly group of vision impaired and sighted cyclists. We focus on social rides, bringing vision impaired and sighted cyclists together, promoting social inclusion and equal access to cycling, improving the physical and mental wellbeing of our members.
How we started
Glasgow Tandem Club was formed in 2018 by Anne Fraser, a keen vision impaired tandem cyclist who wanted to develop a club in the West of Scotland similar to those in other parts of the country.
With support from Big Bike revival, RNIB Connect and Free Wheel North, a small group was formed started going on regular monthly rides, taking in many local routes such as the cycle path networks and some road routes including around the island of Bute.
In 2019, Cycling UK successfully applied for funding from the RS McDonald Charitable Trust for our tandems, but there was nowhere to keep them! After a long search for suitable storage Glasgow Cycling UK members group donated the funding for a container from their Eddie Marshall bequest fund and Glasgow Life gave permission to site it at Bellahouston Park, close to the outdoor cycle track. Bike for Good also came on board, offering help with transporting the tandems to ride start points, and mechanical assistance for regular maintenance.
Our recent achievements
Covid brought the fun to a halt over 2020, but as restrictions lifted our club has grown . We are very grateful that due to generous support from Glasgow Life, Cycling UK Glasgow members group and Cycling UK Cycleshare fund we have been able to purchase new tandems, including an e-tandem, engage a mechanic regularly to keep our bikes in tip top condition, and keep us supplied with all the spare parts we need! In 2023 our members were busy. Tandem pair Beth and Cheryl, with Ian as solo support, completed LEJOG, raising over £3000 as they went , which allowed us to buy a second small size tandem for our fleet. 8 tandem pairs completed the Straven 50 – a local 50 mile sportive ride and were much admired by the solo riders! We held our first long weekend away in Dunoon over 4 days, during which 8 tandem pairs completed the 3 ferries challenge – an iconic ride from Dunoon over to Bute and back over the hilly route by Loch Tarsan.
Our activities
We now offer regular rides twice per month every 2nd and 4th Saturday. Rides vary in length and difficulty, often dictated by the weather! Recently we’ve had shorter and longer rides running at the same time to accommodate the needs of our members. Club members give their enthusiasm, time and energy and the club continues to grow its community and activities.