Regular readers may have noticed a slightly more sporadic nature to my blog entries recently. This is down to a number of reasons, one being the busy nature of modern life and that fact that it takes time to think about and write this blog every week; another reason has been the need for me to sit back and think about what this blog is about.

When I first started writing it was because I was frustrated by the way in which cyclists are portrayed both by those people who do cycle and those who don't. My aim was to try and present a more balanced viewpoint and I hoped that my blogging would encourage discussion and reasoned opinion from all sides of the fence.

Over the last couple of years it has become apparent that this may have been a naive view and that those who seem to be anti-cycling are never going to be able to change their minds, but that doesn't mean I should give up and stop trying show that cycling really is the best way to get around and that cyclists are people too!

There are often a lot of comments left against my blogs, particularly if I choose a controversial topic like my last one, sometimes I read the comments but often I choose not to as it can be demoralising to see how so many people choose to descend into petty insults and how often sweeping generalisations are made by people who don't appear to have actually read the blog.

I did read a couple of the comments against my last posting and some of them seemed to call my existence into question as if I am a fictional character created just to blog! I can assure you that I am a real person, at least I was last time I checked, so here's a quick rundown of who I am!

I am a 40-something cyclist, husband, father, son, driver, pedestrian and human being who works in IT for a living.

I have ridden a bike since I was about 4; my first bike was a hand-me-down that was red with white tyres and rod brakes and I clearly remember the stabilisers coming off and learning to ride without them in the garden with my Dad helping me.

Since then I have owned numerous bikes of all shapes and sizes and now have a reasonable collection that help me ride to work, ride for fun both on and off-road and occasionally compete when the mood takes me; I have never not owned a bicycle.

Over the next few months I am going to try and regularly remind everyone how much fun cycling is and how much better it is to cycle to work than it is to drive!

We are being bombarded by the media at the moment about cycling and we have to accept that the number of people getting about under their own steam on two wheels is going to increase.

Government and local councils are all preparing or actually implementing plans to improve and increase cycling infrastructure. Car use is going to become more and more expensive and less and less convenient as we are going to be forced to park further away and pay more for the privilege...getting on your bike just makes sense!

The one thing that is bugging me about the media coverage at the moment is the constant question of "how do we make cyclists safer?" The answer is simple...educate the drivers!

It's not my cycling that puts me in danger it's the drivers whose ignorance or arrogance means that they ignore the law and the Highway Code and put me in danger. There are silly and dangerous cyclists, I've never suggested otherwise, but the biggest danger to cyclists on the road definitely comes from other vehicles.

I feel that I haven't actually written much about cycling this week and I really wanted to as something I enjoy a lot has happened in the last couple of weeks - winter has finally arrived!

I really enjoy wrapping up warm in my winter kit and riding to work on frosty mornings. As a cyclist I get to see things that most people miss - a frozen Poole Park lake first thing in the morning as the sun is rising is a really nice sight.

Sunrise over the Needles is something I get to see regularly and when the beach is covered in frost and, on rare occasions, there is ice at the water’s edge it's really fantastic. I also must not forget to mention the sensation of a frozen beard and being able to pick solid bits of ice off your chin, for some reason I really enjoy this!

It takes me about the same time to get to work whether I cycle or drive, however my normal cycling route is about 10 miles whereas my drive is about 8.5 miles. When I cycle, it's much easier to predict my journey time as traffic conditions don't have much effect on the journey and even adverse weather conditions can be allowed for by taking different routes.

When I cycle, I invariably arrive at my destination in a good mood, wide awake and looking forward to whatever is coming next. It's such a huge contrast to arriving at your destination feeling weary and half asleep having sat in a little metal box for the last 40 minutes or so frustrated because your average speed has been so slow and you've just been using lots of petrol sat in traffic.

Please don't misunderstand my message, I am not a tree hugging hippy who preaches that cars are evil, I like my car... it's just that bikes are better!

Based on information supplied by David Brown.