Critical Mass Nottingham (August 2023)

Our sister project in Nottingham. A bike celebration/demonstration/ride. An opportunity to claim the roads for riders once a month. We meet outside The Bell at The Old Market Square on the last Friday of every month at 6.45pm. Ride leaves at 7pm.

We Meet 👇

Advice for new massers

Keep bunched up — Things get dangerous when a car tries to overtake stragglers and ends up in the middle of the mass. If at the front keep looking over your shoulder to check you’re not getting too far ahead. Cycle at a reasonable pace. Cycling too slowly annoys drivers, who think we’re driving deliberately slow to annoy them.

Cork junctions and entrances on to roundabouts — The riders at the front should stop and clearly block off the entrance into the mass and rejoin the back. This gives drivers a clear indication of what’s going on and prevents a driver seeing a gap and dangerously cutting into the group.

Stop at red lights unless the front of the mass is already through in which case keep going to stop splitting, think of the mass as a single vehicle. This is where having corked the incoming traffic can be especially useful.

Give pedestrians priority when they want to cross, especially at junctions and crossings.

Angry drivers — Sometimes people are so used to hogging the road they can’t get their head around waiting for someone. If you feel confident reason with them, photograph them and their number plate if they’re doing something stupid, don’t let them sneak in or up the side of the mass only to meet a car coming the other way and cause a right palaver. Most importantly, don’t put yourself in danger.

Be visible — If its dark bring some high vis, bike lights, get some fairy lights and a battery.

Bells, horns, whistles, music, costumes, colours, unusual bikes — Bring anything that can brighten the mood and make it a bit special.

Look out for each other — Is someone struggling up the hill? Is someone racing off on their own? Does that brave soul on a skateboard need a tow?

Shout out to other massers your intentions — i.e. left or right at next junction, slow down, speed up, stop and regroup. Unlike other groups of road users, we can communicate directly with each other, so we should use this advantage to the fullest.

Enjoy yourself — it’s a great feeling being able to use the road and not the gutter!