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Cycling Proficiency

Kids learn to ride like the pros thanks to Britain's first cycling proficiency tests.

Training film/TV programme 1949 8 mins

Overview

"Far too many bicycles used by boys and girls are incorrectly adjusted and inefficiently ridden," bemoans the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents in this sober film, which goes on helpfully to show the correct way to set up your bike, ride correctly and take hills in your stride. British cycling record holder Ernest Steele demonstrates how to ride for stamina on his trusty Raleigh.

At the age of 64, Ernest Steele set a British cycling endurance record by covering 100 miles in 5 hours and 21 minutes. Cycling proficiency tests were in their infancy when this film was made, and the national scheme wasn't launched until 1958.