‘Bikes are a miracle pill for older adults ..'
.. Handy then the Barnes Charity Bike Sale is soon - Story 121
Imagine if a team of scientists devised a drug which massively reduced people’s chances of developing cancer or heart disease, cutting their overall likelihood of dying early by 40%.
This would be front page news worldwide, a Nobel prize as good as in the post.
That drug is already here, albeit administered in a slightly different way: it’s called cycling.
I had long known about the health benefits of cycling. I was used to reading articles like this one by Peter Walker in the Guardian. But knowing and doing are very different things.
In the autumn of 2019 in my late fifties and keen both to improve my health and shorten the commute to Shepherd’s Bush, I had a revelation on a Lime bike in Budapest. The city felt magical. Hills? What hills?
Back in Barnes, my initial thought was to pick up something at the Barnes Charity Bike Sale but I had missed that year’s event. A pity.
So I bought my first e-bike instead. the Volt Metro is a wonderful example of modern British engineering
If you are thinking of trying cycling, especially if you are around my age, then try a Lime bike and/or buy a cheap second hand bike at the Barnes Charity Bike Sale. Most of the adult bikes sell for less than £180, which is a considerable saving on the price of a new bike.
Alternatively if you have a bike going spare, then please consider donating it to the charity.

The way it works
If want to help the fund-raising, you can donate or sell your bike. If you choose to sell, it if goes for more than £70, the proceeds are split 50/50 between you and the Charity.
Whichever option, you should clearn your bike and then take it to the team who will be at the churchyard at the following times;
Saturday 16 August - 10am-12noon
Saturday 23 August - 10am-12noon
Saturday 30 August -10am-12noon
Thursday 4 September - 5pm-7pm
I have donated twice and can vouch for this team and process. Your bike will be assessed and then made sale-ready by a team of volunteer engineers. After a sale, you receive an email explaining what happened to your bike.
If you want to buy to buy a bike, the 2025 sale is on the morning of Saturday 13 September at St Mary's Church.
All monies raised are split betweeen Barnes Common, Castlenau Community Centre, Age UK Barnes and Refugees Welcome, as well as St Mary’s that hosts the sale.
Notes & thoughts
London’s share of sustainable travel has been stuck at about 63% for years. Cycling accounts for just 4.6% of trips in 2024, but its importance is disproportionate. This is especially true for younger Londoners for whom e-bikes from Lime bikes and the like, matter hugely.
I suspect e-bikes will become just as vital for the over-60s in the next few years.
They shorten journeys and flatten hills. You realise how hilly London can be, jumping onto a bike for the first time. They are perfect around Barnes and Mortlake. They also make one other contribution. Removing one more car from the road, makes the environment much more pleasant, enabling a pedestrian-first Barnes.
The Charity Sale is a good place to buy a bike because it offers variety as well as value. There are so many bikes and so many types of bikes for sale. Since 2006, the charity has repaired 1770 bikes. That is why it has raised over £100,000 for the charities we support.
If do decide to buy, please go to the sale early. There is guaranteed to be a long queue. More than half of the bikes are sold in the first hour of the sale. There are a few coffee shops nearby to make sure you don’t go hungry or thirsty.
There will be more on cycling and the especially cycling the over 60s shortly. In the meantime you can follow the Barnes Charity Bike Sale on Instagram or via their website.